Category Archives: Libertarian

Cliff Hyra has a ready answer for anyone who thinks being governor is not an entry-level job: Roughly one-fourth of the countrys current governors started their political careers that way. One of them, in fact, serves as governor of Virginia. (Whether Terry McAuliffe qualifies as an argument for gubernatorial neophytes or against them is an open question.)

Wisely, Hyra the Libertarian Partys candidate for governor of Virginia this year does not bring up another example of a novice: Donald Trump, who holds the most important elected position in the world without any prior political experience. Trumps approval ratings in Virginia continue to dangle below 40 percent.

But Trump does neuter arguments Libertarians often confront, such as the notion that people will not vote for a political outsider. And the criticism that Libertarian candidates are ill-prepared for office a stereotype Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson reinforced last year with his infamous Aleppo Moment. That was embarrassing, but Trump makes Johnson look like a walking encyclopedia.

The Trump era also confounds other received wisdom, such as the supposed immutability of ideological groups. A recent American Enterprise Institute study on The 5 Types of Trump Voters finds that almost 20 percent hold essentially progressive views on economic and social issues. Some of the fiercest Trump critics, on the other hand, are traditional conservatives of the National Review variety. Never-Trump Republicans make up a significant segment of the political populace.

This has led to a fair amount of speculation about a potential re-alignment of Americas political parties. Libertarians, who generally sound like Republicans on economics and Democrats on social issues, should be able to benefit from such a realignment by forming a coalition from both parties who favor limited government across a broad swath of issues.

Nice theory, anyway. It hasnt worked out so well in practice. (Just like libertarianism itself! cackle Statler and Waldorf from the Muppet Show balcony.) Even in elections where Libertarians have had a chance to break into the big leagues because the two major-party candidates turned off so many voters, they have come up short.

It happened last year, when Johnson a former Republican and two-time governor received only 3 percent of the vote. And it happened four years ago, when Libertarian gubernatorial candidate Robert Sarvis won 6.5 percent of the vote for governor of Virginia against McAuliffe and the GOPs Ken Cuccinelli.

If Libertarians cant break 10 percent (or even 5) in elections like those, its hard to see how they can make a bigger splash any other time. Which isnt to say the party is doomed to irrelevance. New Hampshire now has three sitting Libertarians in the state legislature. And even candidates who have no chance of winning can still make an impact by steering public discourse down different avenues. Just ask Bernie Sanders.

Yet Sanders was no neophyte. He was an established politician offering an alternative to dissatisfied party loyalists. Virginians already have had two of those this year: Tom Perriello on the left and Corey Stewart on the right. Periello carried the Sanders flag in the Democratic primary and got trounced. Stewart, a Trumpian to the core, carried the Confederate flag in the GOP primary and almost won.

That is bad news for the Virginia GOP, but it could be worse news for Hyra who, on his campaign website, describes himself as socially inclusive. In his acceptance speech at the Libertarian Party nominating event, Hyra also stressed the virtues of unlimted freedom and please note respect.

Social inclusion and respect were not exactly high among Stewarts campaign themes. And Republicans who are turned off by the Stewart wing of the party can simply vote for their establishment nominee, Ed Gillespie.

Still, Hyra is performing a signal service simply by running. Like Sarvis before him, he is palpably smart, with an undergrad degree in aerospace engineering and a career as an intellectual-property lawyer.

He is straight-laced, which can only do good for the Libertarian Partys image. And he thinks people are tired of partisan rancor, and therefore might be open to someone who focuses on ideas, not teams or tribal affiliation. He is not an ideologue by an means, he says. Incrementalism is sort of my calling card. ... I dont worry about privatizing the roads. If a policy works, then we should be open to it.

Hyra has crafted a platform tailored to promote innovation and economic growth: End the states BPOL tax, which applies to the first dollar of business revenue, rather than the first dollar of profit. Repeal certain occupational licensing requirements. Cut personal income taxes. Expand charter schools. Repeal the Certificate of Public Need regime in health care. Legalize marijuana. Roll back regulations that hinder the growth of the food and beverage industry.

And focus on respect. Respect is at the heart of libertarianism, he said in an interview on Wednesday: Just because you think someone else is wrong doesnt mean you should impose your will on them. Its important, Hyra says, to have respect for people no matter how different they are.

Thats a message Virginians probably respect in turn. Whether the regard translates into votes, however, could be a different story.

More here:

A. Barton Hinkle column: Can Libertarian Cliff Hyra make a dent in the Virginia governor's race? - Richmond.com

Summer in a gubernatorial election year means its time to start the debate over the number of debates.

And it has, with a flourish. Republican nominee Ed Gillespie proposed a series of 10 debates with Democratic nominee Ralph Northam, a somewhat more modest demand than the 15 debatesRepublican Ken Cuccinelli demanded of Democrat Terry McAuliffe in 2013.

Northam has accepted threedebatesand seven joint appearances, but he dismissed the overall demand as a public relations stunt.

Gillespie called Northams counter-offer insulting.

Both candidates are correct. This is a public relations stunt, as Northam said, and a very old, tired one at that. It is also insulting, but not in the way Gillespie meant.

The insult is that gubernatorial debates in Virginia are little more than smaller versions of the carefully packaged affairs weve all witnessed at the national level.

What people watch for and what the press and political junkies delight in are those gotcha moments that make for great copy and easy attack lines.

But lets indulge Gillespie on his demand for many debates and ignore his own ducking and dodging on the issue in the waning months of the Republican primary.

Lets have 10 debates. Or 19, as the Roanoke Times has suggested.

But lets also insist on a couple of things.

Libertarians had a good case for being included in the 2013 debates between Cuccinelli and McAuliffe. But their candidate, Robert Sarvis, had to settle for running an ad during one debate. He was excluded from another by a media outlet because he didnt qualify under debate rules worked out between the major-party candidates.

Bipartisan agreement is easy to find, especially if it leads to keeping voters in the dark.

While Sarvis ended up winning just 6.5 percent of the vote, and Republicans still blame his campaign for costing Cuccinelli the election (a claim Paul Goldman and I refuted), including Sarvis on the debate stage would have offered voters a bit of relief from that campaigns incessant negativity.

It also might have offered them a critique of the major parties, their policies and their records.

That would have been refreshing and enlightening.

Hyra campaign director John Vaught LaBeaume told me that his candidate would be willing to participate in any and all debates or forums that both the Democratic and Republican candidates agree to take part in.

As he should.

LaBeaume also hopes the debate organizers are open to including Hyra and do not fall prey to the self-interested campaigns of the Democratic and GOP nominees.

That would mean the Northam and Gillespie campaigns would have to agree to allow Hyra in as part of their ground rules for debating one another.

Thats self-serving and should not be tolerated by any debate sponsor, particularly if that sponsor is a media organization.

To its credit, Roanoke television station WDBJtried to get the campaigns to agree to allow Sarvis to join the debate the station sponsored in 2013 owing to quite a bit of negative reaction to [his] exclusion.

The McAuliffe campaign was somewhat interested in the idea; the Cuccinelli campaign wasnt.

Should we expect a similar outcome this year?

Gillespie spokesman David Abrams told me, Either Ed or Ralph Northam is going to be the next governor of Virginia, which is why the organizations sponsoring debates invited them.

Northam spokesman David Turner told me the campaign would agree to include Hyra in the debates.

Thats a good first step. One that fits Northams political calculus, but still good. Candidates should agree to participate in as many as possible and televise them all. And organizers truly interested in an exchange of ideas rather than a clash of talking points dont allow the candidates to dictate terms.

After all, youre paying for the microphone.

Visit link:

Let the Libertarian debate - The Washington Post - Washington Post

Posted July 7, 2017 by Adam Flanery & filed under American History, Civil Rights, Labor, National Government, National Politics, News and Public Affairs, Social Services, State Government.

A lot of books have tried to explain the rise of conservative power that poses a direct challenge to the reforms that came about under the New Deal, the labor movement, the Civil Rights movement, and the Great Society.

In her new book, a Duke University professor reveals a little known conservative think tank that had its beginnings on the University of Virginia campus. With help from one of the Koch brothers, the think tank helped reframe the debate over the role of business, government and individuals.

The book is Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Rights Plan for America.

The author is Nancy MacLean. Shes the William H. Chafe Professor of History and Public Policy at Duke University. Her previous book is Freedom is Not Enough. Host Rob Lorei interviewed her about her new book.

To listen back to this interview from Thursday, June 15, 2017 click here.

Tags: Koch brothers, Nancy MacLean

Read more:

Libertarian Republicans Powered by Billionaire Money Plan to Undo Gains of Last 100 Years - WMNF

Libertarian Cliff Hyra formally kicked off his campaign for governor Thursday, saying he would work to exempt the first $60,000 of household income from state income taxes, legalize marijuana and pardon people imprisoned solely for using drugs.

Hyra, 34, a lawyer who was raised in Northern Virginia and lives in Mechanicsville, called for an inclusive and innovative Virginia and for a state government that has respect for all Virginians, no matter their beliefs or their backgrounds.

Hyra, who is making his first bid for elective office, says his mother is a Democrat and his father is a Republican. He says he considered himself a Democrat until he went to college and that he has been a Libertarian for most of his adult life.

I feel strongly about empowering people to make their own choices, he said, because I care about other people and about our community and I fear the corrosive effects of a government that thinks that it knows whats best for everybody and is prepared to force everyone to act accordingly.

He made his announcement in bustling downtown Richmond at the corner of West Broad and North Jefferson streets. Hyra sometimes had to raise his voice to be heard above the din of passing buses and construction equipment working on the bus rapid transit project.

On taxes, Hyra would exempt the first $60,000 of household income. On his campaign website, he says he would avoid the massive marriage penalty by allowing individuals to exempt $30,000. Taxable income above that would be taxed at a flat 5.75 percent.

He says the average household would pay no state income tax and would have a savings of $3,000 per year.

During an interview Wednesday at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Hyra said preliminary calculations indicate his plan would cost somewhere between $3 billion and $4 billion.

We have some work to square that, with the states finances, he said.

He said state revenues are projected to rise and that freezing growth of government will take us part of the way there.

He said he also is looking at recommendations by a panel headed by former Gov. L. Douglas Wilder which in 2002 made a series of suggestions about slimming state government.

He also wants to look at state-owned real estate that is sitting vacant or is underutilized and could be made more efficient. In addition, he said he wants to accrue savings through reforms in the criminal justice system.

Ed Gillespie, the Republican nominee for governor, is emphasizing an across-the-board tax cut as the centerpiece of his agenda.

Gillespies proposal centers on a 10 percent cut to the individual income tax rate, phased in over three years. For the states highest income bracket which covers income above $17,000 the rate would drop from 5.75 percent to 5.15 percent.

Gillespies campaign says his plan, once fully implemented, would save a typical Virginia family nearly $1,300 a year, a figure based on average household income of $135,000.

Using the median household income of $69,945, the savings would be $674, according to the Gillespie campaign.

As for the drug issue, Hyra said Thursday that Were spending too much money enforcing the counterproductive prohibition on marijuana use.

He said that as governor he would push to legalize marijuana and until legalization becomes possible I would order that enforcement of the marijuana prohibition is given the lowest possible priority.

He said he would pardon those in prison solely for their use of drugs.

In 2016, according to the Virginia State Police, contributing law enforcement agencies reported 39,666 drug-related arrests in Virginia and marijuana accounted for 58.7 percent of the arrests.

Those figures do not distinguish between simple possession and distribution or manufacturing.

Hyra said he favors putting marijuana on the same level as tobacco and alcohol, which he said would let the business grow and generate tax revenue and improve lives of Virginians.

Hyra also called for the establishment of more charter schools, saying: I want to put choice and competition into the education system here in Virginia.

Nine public charter schools are operating in Virginia, according to the Virginia Department of Education. Three are in Richmond the Patrick Henry School of Science and Arts, the Richmond Career Education and Employment Academy and the Metropolitan Preparatory Academy.

On health care, Hyra wants to leverage the power of choice and competition to improve access and decrease costs.

He said he wants to eliminate Virginias Certificate of Public Need program, which requires anyone who wishes to build a new hospital or imaging facility go through an application process with the state.

He is against two proposed natural gas pipelines, seeing them as the federal government taking private property to benefit private companies.

Hyra grew up in Falls Church and in the Springfield section of Fairfax County. He graduated from Virginia Tech with a degree in aerospace engineering and from George Mason Universitys law school.

Hyra started an intellectual property law practice in 2008. He joined Symbus Law Group as a partner in 2012 and specializes in patent and trademark law.

He and his wife, Stephanie, have three young children and are expecting a fourth in August. In 2015, they moved to Mechanicsville, Hyras wifes hometown.

In the 2013 race for governor in which Democrat Terry McAuliffe edged Republican Ken Cuccinelli Libertarian Robert Sarvis received 6.5 percent of the tally, garnering more than 146,000 votes.

Hyra asserted that hes proposing more substance than Gillespie or Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam, the Democratic nominee.

I want to push actual ideas, he said, adding: I think if you want actual change, you should support me.

Hyra stressed that he wants to run a civil campaign.

In the interview Wednesday at The Times-Dispatch, he said with a laugh: If I didnt respect people who disagree with me, I would not respect hardly anyone.

Here is the original post:

Libertarian candidate for governor of Virginia calls for tax cut ... - Richmond.com

TUPELO Mayor Jason Shelton will provide a keynote address this Saturday at a political event in Biloxi hosted by the state Libertarian Party.

Shelton is a Democrat and will join a roster of speakers that otherwise tilts Republican and Libertarian.

At least some deological diversity is precisely the point of the gathering, which is dubbed Loungin with Libertarians.

Promotional material for the event describes it as a venue for Libertarians and adherents of other political viewpoints to interact and network.

This is the fifth such Loungin event. It will be held at the White House Hotel in Biloxi.

Shelton himself is an advocate of a more collaborative and less ideologically blinkered political discourse. He has criticized the major U.S. political parties as a preoccupation with partisan advantage to the neglect of a functioning government.

With that in view, Shelton is happy to consider his appearance at a Libertarian event as en effort to help leverage his elected officer to broker a different kind of political environment.

I do feel a personal responsibility to do what I can to make it better, Shelton said in a recent interview with the Daily Journal. As mayor of Tupelo, you have a pretty high profile job.

Shelton himself is comfortable in a bi-partisan environment. He has twice now been comfortably elected as a Democrat in a traditionally Republican city and maintains a strong working relationship with a City Council under the control of a Republican supermajority.

Though he hasnt ruled out a run for higher office, Shelton has avoided strongly ideological fights during his tenure in office and has focused instead on what he calls good government.

Other speakers at the Saturday Libertarian event include a Republican member of the Biloxi City Council and the independent mayor of McLain. A member of the state Libertarian Partys executive committee will also deliver remarks. Other guests expected to attend include the newly-elected Republican mayor of Ocean Springs who identifies as largely Libertarian in outlook.

Libertarians generally align themselves with the Republican Party because of their strong support of a minimal federal government, low regulation and light taxation.

The party typically differs from traditional Republican stances, however, on foreign policy and national security issues as well as civil liberties and drug policy.

See original here:

Shelton to keynote Libertarian event on coast - Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal

Being Libertarian

Libertarian Party of Cuba Experiences Further Tyranny Being Libertarian The Libertarian Party of Cuba has continued to experience state tyranny from the Castro regime simply for having formed a party of liberty-minded dissidents. Less than a month after their initial detainment, members of the Libertarian Party of Cuba ...

Here is the original post:

Libertarian Party of Cuba Experiences Further Tyranny - Being Libertarian

Getting elected as a third-party candidate is no easy feat in the United States.

In fact, the deck is so stacked against alternative candidates courtesy of gerrymandered voting districts that favor one of the major parties, ballot access laws that make it impossible for third parties to gain momentum with each passing election cycle, or public debates that only invite Democrats and Republicans to participate that it is practically impossible.

But the Libertarian Party has created a model to bypass this hurdle, and it is working out swimmingly for them at the moment. Since the 2016 election, an increasing number of elected legislators have switched their official party affiliation from one of the major parties to Libertarian.

ALSO READ:The 2016 Elections Biggest Winner: Gary Johnson and The Libertarian Party?

It all started with Nebraska State Senator Laura Ebke. Ebke, an elected Republican, became increasingly disenfranchised with the trajectory of her party.

I got frustrated with some of my colleagues who dont recognize civil liberties and dont seem to agree with getting government out of peoples business, she told the Omaha World-Herald.

To demonstrate her frustration, Ebke made the bold move in June 2016: she swapped the R next to her name with an L.

I got frustrated with some of my colleagues who dont recognize civil liberties and dont seem to agree with getting government out of peoples business.

Ebke was the first of many disenfranchised legislators to jettison one of the major parties in favor of the third largest party in the United States.

In the last year, Libertarian Party representation in state legislatures quadrupled. (Bear in mind that there are over 7,000 seats in all state upper and lower houses combined; Libertarians occupy 4 of them. Sadly, this is still more than any other minor party in the United States.)

Owning up to its libertarian motto of live free or die, New Hampshire has become the trendsetter for this mass exodus from mainstream parties to the LP. In the past year, three sitting legislators Reps. Caleb Q. Dyer, Joseph Stallcop, and Brandon Phinney switched their affiliations. Phinney and Dyer were former Republicans, and Stallcop a Democrat.

I was not elected to do the bidding of a political party at the expense of my principles, stated Phinney, who was the most recent to convert.

Establishment partisan politics do nothing to protect the rights of people, but instead only serve to prop up and expand government with arcane plans to irresponsibly spend our money and enact burdensome regulations on businesses, small and large alike. N.H. State Rep. Joseph Stallcop (L)

With a growing caucus and improved access to legislation, the Libertarian Party of New Hampshire is poised to enact legislation that reflect the party platform of limited government and strengthened civil liberties, ranging from the abolition of the death penalty to the legalization of recreational marijuana.

So have Libertarians discovered a back door entrance into mainstream politics? The jury is still out if this is a sustainable strategy.

Undoubtedly, the strategy doesnt entail campaigning as one party and then switching parties after the election. Such a bait and switch will only harm the brand.

I dont suggest that people run for office with the purpose of changing parties if theyre elected, Ebke comments in an email interview. If you run with the intention of doing that, I doubt that youre going to get elected in any race of significance.

Ebke suggests the better strategy for the LP is to keep its eyes open for legislators (and other officials) who seem to be libertarian leaning. She suggests that US RepsJustin Amash and Thomas Massie are both prime examples of elected Republicans who might be prime targets for such a conversion on the national level.

If candidates remain true to the core principles that got them elected in the first place, they can easily make the case that partisan politics are secondaryespecially when those politics are tied to the toxic partisanship of Washington D.C.

Whether or not this strategy is effective will be realized during re-election season. These third party candidates now face a series of new challenges running outside of the mainstream parties. Making the switch to a smaller party means decreased access to the major party funds often needed for re-election.

Ebke is in the midst of fundraising for her re-election, and is thriving on small donations from grassroots donors, since financial support for candidates from her party is minimal. She encourages supporters donors, voters, and state party leaders to be prepared and committed to backing and helping this group of legislators.

And let me be clear helping a candidate is not just about being an internet warrior, Ebke adds. Its about knocking on doors, walking in parades, donating money, and phone banking. If the Party politically abandons those who move in their direction, people will quit moving that way.

The Libertarian Party is often perceived to be an ideologically-driven organization. However, with the nomination of candidates like Gary Johnson and Bill Weld, who often strayed away from party orthodoxy, the ideology that once founded the party appears less rigid, attracting more independent and unaffiliated voters than previous elections.

If the Party politically abandons those who move in their direction, people will quit moving that way.

A party that is successful will be a big tent, adds Ebke. If the Libertarian Party can be tolerant of those who are generally libertarian-minded, but might not agree on every detail, I think its got great potential for growth.

Keeping an open ear to disaffected partisans, who share a common ground on various issues, is the first step in a meaningful and persuasive conversation one in whichall third parties should engage.

See the rest here:

Libertarian Takeover: More Lawmakers Are Ditching The Major Parties - IVN News

The Libertarian Republic

Top 5 Most Libertarian Ways to Celebrate Independence Day The Libertarian Republic Independence Day on July 4th of each calendar year may be among the most libertarian holidays. It is a celebration of rebellion against an oppressive... and more »

See original here:

Top 5 Most Libertarian Ways to Celebrate Independence Day - The Libertarian Republic

A Libertarian Party candidate for governor has qualified to be on the ballot for November's general election in Virginia.

The Virginian-Pilot reports 34-year-old Cliff Hyra will join Democratic nominee Ralph Northam and Republican nominee Ed Gillespie on the Nov. 7 ballot. The Virginia Department of Elections confirmed Thursday that Hyra had qualified, following the submission of petitions bearing more than 10,000 signatures.

Hyra is a patent attorney from Hanover County and is running for elected office for the first time. He has a bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering from Virginia Tech and a law degree from George Mason University.

Libertarian Robert Sarvis collected less than 7 percent of the popular vote in the last Virginia gubernatorial contest.

Comments express only the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of this website or any associated person or entity. Any user who believes a message is objectionable can contact us at [emailprotected].

Go here to read the rest:

Libertarian candidate enters Virginia gubernatorial fray - Loudoun Times-Mirror

As we celebrate Americas Independence Day this week, its worth reflecting how far the country has come in its 241 years.

The very fact that we call it a single country would be a novelty to many of the Founders, who were frequently adamant about the ultimate independence of their states. The level of independence of member states was genuinely remarkable in its early days.

Until the issue was settled once and for all about four score and seven years later, internal affairs of states were essentially ignored by the federal authorities. Take the Dorr Rebellion of 1841-1842, in which Rhode Island essentially underwent a popular uprising and coup dtat against the elected governor and legislator. The response of the federal government in Washington, D.C. was essentially to shrug its shoulders and keep an eye on the situation. Imagine such latitude today!

The states were once much more different from each other than they are now. Culturally and politically, the various member states have become progressively more alike. That accelerated in the era of expanded federal authority, as well as during the entry of western states into the union (that did the legal equivalent of copy-and-paste of the state constitutions they remembered). Despite that, there are still a number of interesting examples of state government systems that deviate from the norm.

Here are some of the most interesting and unique features of government.

Nebraska is the only state with a legislature with just one chamber. It has the advantage of making legislation drafting and passage much more efficient, but obviously eschews the benefits (and hardships) of the bicameral system employed in every other state and at the federal level that allows for an internal check on and revision of laws before they are passed on to the Governor for signing into law.

The underlying premise of Nebraskas legislature is efficiency and transparency. A smaller legislature with fewer secretive committees may be forced to be more open and responsive to the citizenry.

Maine is unique for two reasons. The first has been an interesting feature of the states constitution for many years the special representation of recognized Native American tribes in the state. Each of the recognized tribes has an observer seat reserved in Maines House of Representatives, similar to the House seat reserved for the District of Columbia in the federal legislature.

The second interesting feature of Maine is a recent development. The state has adopted an instant-runoff system in which voters rank candidates by preference rather than voting for just one. This allows second preferences to be counted if no single candidate gets a majority in the first round, which opens up a range of opportunities for smaller parties to contend, as well as for independents. It eliminates the notion that voting for a party other than Democrats and Republicans is a waste. Of all recent electoral law developments, Maines may be the most consequential for people fighting the two-party duopoly.

New Hampshire has one of the most fascinating governmental structures.

One reason for that is the sheer number of representatives in the legislature. The New Hampshire House of Representatives has 400 members, representing a population of 1.3 million. It is the second largest legislature in the world, after Indias national parliament, for one of the smallest states in the union. That level of representation makes representatives extremely responsive and makes politics exceptionally local. Because the electoral districts are so small, minor parties occasionally stand a chance. The current House includes three Libertarians, the most in the nation. Some small-government advocates might blanche at that number of legislators, fearing the cost of such an institution. But New Hampshireites are a frugal bunch; like in several states, the role of legislator is a part-time job that carries no pay besides limited travel expenses.

Another unique aspect of New Hampshire is its divided executive. Rather than vesting all power in the Governor, there is also a separately elected Executive Council, which has essential veto power over the Governor. A fitting additional check on executive power from a state known for its particular skepticism of government. As far a limited government goes, New Hampshires system is hard to beat.

The reason these various ways of organizing state governments is interesting is because institutional organization directly impacts the way policy can be enacted. A strong executive obviously takes power from the legislature. Meanwhile a split executive like in New Hampshire gives tremendous power to the legislative branch. And electoral laws like Maines are sure to increase opportunities for independent candidates and smaller parties.

We should try to learn more about how neighboring states governments work and try to learn how to make our own systems better. Often institutions are left unchanged and experimentation fails to happen. Awareness of the diversity within our own nation might help us all.

This post was written by John Engle.

The views expressed here belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect our views and opinions.

John Engle is a merchant banker and author living in the Chicago area. His company, Almington Capital, invests in both early-stage venture capital and in public equities. His writing has been featured in a number of academic journals, as well as the blogs of the Heartland Institute, Grassroot Institute, and Tenth Amendment Center. A graduate of Trinity College Dublin, Ireland and the University of Oxford, Johns first book, Trinity Student Pranks: A History of Mischief and Mayhem, was published in September 2013.

Like Loading...

Read more from the original source:

Celebrating Our Federal Republic The Right Engle - Being Libertarian