I am a libertarian and I am not voting for Gary Johnson for president in 2016.  While he is certainly better than the two major candidates on many issues, I do not consider him to be a libertarian.  Johnson is libertarian leaning in some respects.  But even when he does take a libertarian position, he typically does not provide an intelligent defense of it.

Johnson’s choice of Bill Weld as his running mate automatically disqualifies him in my eyes.  I know the Libertarian Party ultimately chooses the VP nominee too, but Weld was Johnson’s choice.

If I vote for anyone on the presidential ballot on Tuesday not named “Write-in”, then it will be Darrell Castle of the Constitution Party.

Between Trump and Clinton, I much prefer Trump.  We already know that Clinton is a war hawk and a criminal on many levels.  She is the complete opposite of libertarianism in almost every way.  Still, while I think Trump has done a great job in trying to point out that Americans are getting the short end of the stick from their so-called leaders, I don’t think he has the right solutions in most cases.  I just can’t bring myself to vote for someone with whom I disagree with on so many issues.

With that said, here are 8 reasons to consider voting for Darrell Castle.  I am not telling you what you should or shouldn’t do, but just making a libertarian case for Castle.

1. Castle may turn off many libertarians with his religious and conservative stances.  But his policy proposals do not necessarily reflect his personal views.  For instance, with his pro-life stance on abortion, Castle says that we should take away the Supreme Court’s jurisdiction on the matter and that he would veto any federal spending for abortion providers.  This is the proper constitutional position.
2. Castle wants to repeal the Federal Reserve Act.  He doesn’t just want to audit the Fed or criticize its policies.  He wants to end the Fed.
3. For federal taxation, he proposes a system of apportionment, where each state pays a proportional amount to its census.  This is the way the original federalist system was designed.  It removes power from Washington DC and back to the states.  This alone would likely reduce taxation and federal spending dramatically.
4. On education, Castle believes it should be done at a local level.  In other words, he doesn’t see it as a responsibility of the federal government.
5. Castle generally takes a non-interventionist stance on foreign policy.  The only other candidate on the ballot that may possibly be as good or better on this topic is Jill Stein.  But Stein is mostly a socialist on other issues.
6. Castle says that the U.S. should immediately withdraw from the United Nations.  This is in the name of sovereignty, because he is not planning on engaging in any wars.
7. Castle has stated that he is opposed to the federal war on drugs.  This is an issue where libertarians have not always been in agreement with the Constitution Party.  From a Constitution standpoint, any drug laws should be left to the states.  Castle takes the correct constitutional and decentralist position on this issue.
8. As you can see, Darrell Castle really does take positions consistent with the Constitution.  Even though some libertarians do not revere the Constitution, they can still cheer on Castle’s positions because most or all of his positions are decentralist in nature.  Being a libertarian isn’t about passing laws to legalize liberty; it is about repealing all of the laws that interfere with our liberties.  It is often about taking a decentralist position.

Those are just some of my reasons on why you should consider voting for Darrell Castle for president if you feel so inclined to vote at all.  Let’s face it; your vote isn’t going to decide anything anyway, even if you live in one of the states that is close.  If it comes down to one vote, then it is going to come down to corruption and the courts.

If you are going to vote, you might as well vote for someone who you feel good about.