Bob Barr

Bob Barr, a former Republican U.S. Congressman from Georgia, was the Libertarian Party's 2008 presidential candidate at their 2008 national convention in Denver, Colorado. He also formerly worked for the Central Intelligence Agency as a foreign affairs analyst.

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There seem to be some questions about his position on global warming. He once declared, "Global warming is a myth" to Glenn Beck,[1] and later declared "Global warming is a reality as most every organization that has studied the matter has concluded, whether conservative-leaning, liberal oriented or independent. I am, however, also aware that scientists differ on its causes, impact and remedies. I remain firmly committed to free market solutions and innovations to address this issue; not tax-driven policies."[2] So, essentially, do nothing.

Bob Barr voted to pass the USA Patriot Act and the Defense of Marriage Act, so his libertarianism was in some question to begin with. He did profusely apologize for voting for those two laws when he sought the Libertarian Party nomination, and promised to work to repeal them. Too bad he couldn't find the energy to oppose them when it counted. Further undermining his yet-to-be-elaborated libertarian credentials, Barr was pro-life, pro-death penalty, and pro-teacher-led prayer in public schools. This says a lot more about the Libertarian Party at that particular point in time than it does about First-Amendment-disregarding Bob Barr.

His libertarianism was eventually proven to be a sham. In the 2012 U.S. Presidential Election, Barr endorsed Newt Gingrich,[3] despite the latter's strong anti-libertarian record.[4] By now Barr has made a full return to the GOP, and in 2014 ran and lost a race for a seat in Congress again as a Republican.[5]

He has made contradictory statements in regards to whether or not he supports equal rights for LGBT people. In an interview to The Advocate, he expressed vague support for marriage equality while saying that he ultimately prefers government to be completely uninvolved in the recognition of marriage.[6] Later on, he said that while he supports states rights on the issue of same-sex marriage, he would personally prefer his home state to continue legally defining marriage as existing only between a man and a woman.[7]

Barr once addressed the Council of Conservative Citizens, which is a hate group. He later claimed that he found the group's views "repugnant" and had he known about them he wouldn't have spoken. He could have just asked the Southern Poverty Law Center.[8]

Currently, Barr serves as a freelance columnist/pundit for various publications and websites. He also briefly hosted a radio show in the late-2000's.

References
  1. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDNz0d8Salo
  2. "Bob Barr on Climate Change"
  3. http://dailycaller.com/2012/02/27/bob-barr-libertarians-should-vote-for-gingrich/
  4. Appalling Moments in Newtspeak, Reason
  5. Former congressman Bob Barr loses in Georgia runoff by Sean Sullivan (July 22, 2014) The Washington Post.
  6. http://www.advocate.com/news/news-features/2011/05/03/bob-barr-doma?page=0,1
  7. http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/washington-whispers/2013/06/26/doma-author-bob-barr-clams-up-about-supreme-court-decision
  8. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,990317-2,00.html
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