The Libertarian party appeals to me. Let’s look at an overview of where the Libertarians stand of some of the main issues:
Taxes
Libertarians generally align themselves with the more traditional Republican position and away from the traditional Democratic position, favoring lower taxes at all levels – federal, state, and local. They advocate the elimination of tax subsidies, the double taxation embodied in business income taxes, and ultimately, the replacement of all income and payroll taxes with a single consumption tax that will allow every American and every business to determine their tax burden by making their own spending decisions. I like lower taxes, and making my own decisions.
Foreign Policy
Libertarians favor ending the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. I’ve always thought that our involvement is Iraq was a mistake. We need to stay of the Middle East. We end up taking sides with rebels against dictators, arming those rebels, and then having our own arms used against us when they evolve into ISIS or something worse. These are regional civil / religious wars and we simply don’t belong there.
Libertarians believe in dialing back military spending, ending NSA surveillance, and, in general, truly limiting the size and scope of government, both fiscally and socially. If we need more than $1 trillion dollars to spend on our military, then we have a major management problem there. Also, we don’t need the NSA or any other similar privacy intrusions from the federal government. Government is way too big. Our huge entitlement programs are the main reason our taxes are so high.
Civil Liberties
Libertarians base their beliefs on liberty and freedom, including the state of being subject only to laws established for the good of the community, especially with regard to freedom of action and speech. I agree that individual rights should be protected by law from unjust governmental or other interference.
Legalizing Marijuana
Libertarians believe that responsible adults should be free to “make their own decisions about their bodies, and lead their personal lives as they see fit — as long as no harm is done to others.” Consequently, they want to legalize marijuana. I’m OK with this. I don’t think it’s any worse than alcohol, probably not as addictive, and actually helpful for some people. This would also greatly assist with the criminal justice reform argument below. Some Libertarians want to end the Drug War entirely and legalize all drugs. It’s difficult to argue against this, since everything we’ve declared war on in the last 50 years gets worse; i.e., drugs, poverty, Iraq, etc.
Criminal Justice Reform
As a follow-on to the discussion about legalizing marijuana, our prisons are full of people who were convicted of possession of a few ounces of marijuana or a few grams of meth. They are only possessors–not dealers, and maybe not even users (though this is unlikely). Let’s offer them some rehab, but not lock them up.
Immigration
Basically, the Libertarians favor an easier path to immigration for persons wanting to make a better life for themselves in America. They say, “A bigger fence will only produce taller ladders and deeper tunnels, and that the flow of illegal immigrants across the border is not a consequence of too little security, but rather a legal immigration system that simply doesn’t work.”
I’m personally for stricter enforcements of our borders, but this wouldn’t be a show-stopper for me. They’re probably right that the system is just broken and a wall won’t fix everything.
Gay Marriage
Libertarians support gay marriage. I think that the gay lifestyle constitutes immorality in God’s eyes (Romans 1:18-32). However, this is a distinctly different issue from gay marriage. I believe that marriage is to be between a man and a woman, but I believe that marriage is defined by biblical marriage as distinctly a spiritual institution–not a government one. The government (especially the federal government) just needs to keep its nose out of marriage–gay and straight. So, by this reasoning, I can even accept the Libertarian view on gay marriage–as government staying out of our spiritual affairs, but not as personally accepting the gay lifestyle. There are plenty of things the Bible condemns that the government allows or doesn’t enforce.
Pro-Choice
The Libertarian position is pro-choice, based upon the argument of having the least amount of government intervention. However, this is why I can’t be a Libertarian. Not only because it is morally wrong (which it is), but because we do need a certain amount of government intervention when it comes to things like murder, or hurting each other in other ways–stealing, etc. If there is a single thing that government must do, it is to keep us free by keeping us from hurting or killing each other. When we abort a child, we are taking his liberty–the very thing that Libertarians claim to stand for. They need to consistently adhere to the same argument that they use about legalizing marijuana: “as long as no harm is done to others.”