When It’s All Over

The Libertarian Party nominating convention is more than a year away. The General Election, results unpredictable, is far beyond that. Nonetheless, someday the election campaign and its outcome will have come to an end.

I have no idea whether I will win or lose the race for the nomination. I am doing my best to win, as are each of my serious opponents.

What should the candidate do when the election is said and done?

I realize that there have been past Presidential candidates, who have faced the same question. I’m not talking about them for the moment. They will answer to higher judges, namely to our party’s members and to the weight of history. Here I am only talking about my perspective on my possible future.

The Presidential nomination is the highest honor an American political party can bestow on one of its members. The nominee is the Party’s standard bearer. The nomination shows that a Party has placed its supreme trust and confidence in the nominee. No matter how good or poor his chances for victory, the Presidential nominee shows what sort of a person his party would trust with the highest office in the land.

Having been honored by being made the nominee, having been given millions of dollars and vast hours of volunteer time, the nominee is now in debt to the party. The candidate doesn’t owe the party money. His debt is a debt of honor.

Your party gave you the candidate a distinction shared by almost none of your fellow citizens. You were honored by your party, and now you must return the honor that you were given.

Party loyalty is a fundamental part of that debt. We supported you as the candidate, and now you have the opportunity to do the same. You may or may not involve yourself in future Presidential races, but as the former Libertarian candidate your debt is paid by supporting our future candidates.
Certainly, if I am made our party’s nominee, then in 2009 and afterward I will vigorously support our Libertarian Party’s candidates.

Our party is impoverished. When our party gives hundreds of thousands of dollars to a single candidate, that candidate has a fundamental moral obligation to spend it well. When a candidate wastes vast sums, that candidate hurts our party twice: First, he deprives every other candidate of our very limited resources. Second, he sends loud and clear the message that Libertarian campaign donors are throwing their money away. That message poisons the well for all future campaigns.

You can be sure: I am keeping careful watch on my campaign staff. I spend my money carefully. I encourage activism and voluntary self-organization, because that is the Libertarian way. I don’t micromanage, though I do sometimes kibitz. But I have tried to recruit the best Libertarians available, and I trust them to use their initiative and good judgement.

Advancing our party is very important to me. That’s why I helped found Freedom Ballot Access. I’m working to give our candidates ballot access. After the election, I’ll keep working to create stronger campaigns for our Libertarian Party, because I am loyal to our Party, and because we are the only Party that can bring peace, liberty, and prosperity to America.
George Phillies
www.phillies2008.com

—–
George Phillies is a candidate for the Libertarian Party’s 2008 presidential nomination. His campaign web site is located at www.phillies2008.com. As a matter of course, Rational Review will publish, unedited, the submissions of libertarian presidential candidates. For more information, or for assistance, contact us at info@rationalreview.com.