BBC News interviews Chase Oliver

Chase Oliver has spent his first couple of weeks as Libertarian POTUS nominee collecting press coverage, including athis short interview with the BBC. 

Meet Chase Oliver, the youthful US presidential candidate | BBC News | Anthony Zurcher & Rachel Looker:

June 3, 3024 - "Some voters ... may see a less familiar option on their presidential ballot when in the polling booth this November: Chase Oliver. Mr Oliver is this year's presidential nominee for the Libertarian Party, a political party that typically wins around one per cent of the national vote and is known for promoting civil liberties and small government. At 38 (just three years above the constitutional threshold to be a presidential candidate), Mr Oliver is by far the youngest contender in this year’s field. He is also the only openly gay candidate, which he says he hopes serves as an example to aspiring LGBT politicians. 

"The former Georgia congressional candidate finds himself as a third-party presidential nominee in an election where voters have a sense of déjà vu. Former President Donald Trump has won the Republican party nomination and President Joe Biden is fighting for his second term as the incumbent Democrat.... On Saturday, Trump spoke to the Libertarian Party national convention in Washington DC and asked for their support. He was roundly booed. This was no surprise to Mr Oliver, who ultimately won the party’s presidential nomination after seven rounds of balloting the following day. Mr Oliver said Trump represents 'the warfare state around the world' and criticised his expansion of the US national debt and the Covid lockdowns during his four-year term in office....

"Robert F Kennedy, who is currently organising an independent bid for president, also spoke – and his reception was significantly warmer. When it was time for balloting, however, he ... received support from only about 2% of the delegates and was eliminated in the first round. In polls of the American public, however, Mr Kennedy has been doing significantly better than any third-party or independent candidate in decades, polling around 15% at his highest....

"Mr Oliver says he understands why Mr Kennedy, the nephew of US President John F Kennedy, would do well – but he told Americast that voters looking for an outsider are better served with his party, which is trying to build a lasting alternative to the two-party system. Mr Kennedy, he warns, is a 'one-and-done' option who won’t be around after this election. 'Do you want to cry out with a protest vote?' he asked. 'Or do you want to build something that can last and build up a foundation so that we can tear down the abuses of the state together?.... 

"[I]f Mr Kennedy cuts too deeply into the Libertarian vote share in November, the party could drop below the mark many states set to receive an automatic line in upcoming presidential elections. Such a result could deal a devastating blow to the Libertarian hopes of further broadening the party’s support....

"Central to the Libertarian pitch is an aggressive effort to limit the scope of government by paring back spending and regulation and expanding personal freedoms. In practice, this includes decriminalising most drugs and prostitution, expanding the right to own firearms, drastically curtailing US military spending and allowing open immigration. Some of the party positions have limited public support and cut against the mainstream political debate at the moment.

"'We have to educate the public that immigration is not a scary thing,' Mr Oliver said. 'It’s actually a natural thing that we’ve seen for hundreds of years on the continent of North America and something that I would like to continue seeing.'

"He adds that one of his goals for the upcoming campaign is to expand the appeal of his party to younger voters, who have expressed a particular dissatisfaction with the political status quo in recent years. 'They’re crying out for something better than Republicans or Democrats, and we need to give that to them,' he said. 'We need to provide solutions for their cause and for the problems that they’re facing.'"

Read more: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn00zgkdzlro

Libertarian voters select Chase Oliver to run as incoming president | WQAD News 8 | May 27, 2024:

Scandal-plagued 'green slush fund' shut down

The Trudeau government is shutting down its scandal-plagued Sustainable Development Technology Canada fund, after a scathing Auditor-General's report found contracting rules being ignored, board members voting in clear conflicts of interest, and funding being given to ineligible projects, 

Government shuts down scandal-plagued cleantech fund after scathing auditor report | National Post | Christopher Nardi:

June 4, 2024 "Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne announced he is shutting down Sustainable Development Technology Canada — a  scandal-plagued cleantech fund derogatively referred to as the 'green slush fund' by Conservative MPs — in response to a scathing auditor general report on Tuesday. The government plans to transfer STDC’s funding responsibilities to the National Research Council (NRC).... 

"Auditor General Karen Hogan found that one out of six projects funded by STDC that she audited to the tune of millions were ineligible. [She] also found the organization had serious governance issues.... The auditor also found that the federal public service consistently disregarded its own contracting rules when it awarded $209 million worth of contracts to consulting firm McKinsey, which she described as a symptom of larger issues with the government’s overall procurement practices.... Hogan published two scathing reports Tuesday on how the government manages taxpayer funds either though professional services contracts or funding granted by STDC.

"A first audit of nearly 100 contracts awarded since 2011 to controversial consulting firm McKinsey & Company found 'frequent disregard for procurement policies and guidance' and infrequent proof of value for money.... 71 per cent of those contracts, worth $118 million, were awarded on a non-competitive basis. It also took a swipe at the government’s central purchasing agency, Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC), for failing to challenge other federal organizations when they issued contracts that appeared to overlap....

"Hogan audited 33 of the 97 contracts granted to McKinsey since 2011 and found that critical information was missing in over half (19) of them, such as why the contract was needed, what were the expected deliverables and if they were all provided, and whether the “ultimate intent” of the contract was met. 'All of the above meant that value for money could not be demonstrated for these contracts,' she wrote....

"In her report on STDC, Hogan says she found 'significant lapses' in the foundation’s governance and how it managed public funds. Between 2017 and 2023, STDC’s board approved $836 million worth of funding aimed at helping green technology projects start up, scale up, support their seed funding round, or develop partnerships and networks. But the AG found that the foundation gave out dozens of funding awards — totalling nearly $60 million — to projects that didn’t meet its eligibility criteria, failed to follow its conflict-of-interest policies in nearly 100 cases, and that its board didn’t even have the minimum number of members required by law.

“'We found that the foundation awarded funding to projects that were ineligible, that conflicts of interest existed in some instances, and that certain requirements in the Canada Foundation for Sustainable Development Technology Act were not met,' reads the report. 'It’s not always clear that funding decisions made on behalf of Canadian taxpayers were appropriate and justified,” Hogan added in a statement. 'We found 90 cases where their records showed that members of the board who had declared a conflict of interest were involved in discussions and then voted on awarding funding to a project, and that should not happen,' she told the Commons public accounts committee Tuesday morning.... 

"STDC has been in turmoil since the media reported on internal whistleblower reports flagging significant governance and conflict of issues within the organization beginning in February 2023. There are at least five ongoing or completed investigations into the STDC’s governance, labour practices and funding decisions, including by the AG and the federal ethics commissioner. The president of the board of directors, Annette Verschuren, resigned last year after being the subject of an investigation by the ethics commissioner. She admitted to having approved more than $200,000 in subsidies to the company NRStor, which she runs. The president and CEO of SDTC, Leah Lawrence, also resigned."

Read more: https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/ottawa-ignored-rules-hiring-mckinsey-auditor-general

“Billion-dollar green slush fund scandal”: Conservatives push for answers to whistleblower claims | Global News | December 12, 2023:

Interference alleged in CPC leadership races

Canada's National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians alleges that foreign actors working for the Chinese and Indian governments interfered in Conservative Party of Canada leadership races. 

China, India allegedly interfered in Conservative leadership races: report | CBC News | Peter Zimonjic:

June 3, 2024 - "Foreign actors from India and the People's Republic of China allegedly interfered in more than one race for the leadership of the Conservative Party of Canada, says an intelligence report tabled in the House of Commons on Monday. The report from the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians (NSICOP), a key Canadian intelligence oversight body, says there were 'two specific instances where [People's Republic of China] officials allegedly interfered in the leadership races of the Conservative Party of Canada.'

"Most of the details regarding the allegations in the NSICOP report have been redacted. The report does not provide any further information about the nature of Beijing's alleged interference, or about which Conservative leadership races allegedly were targeted and when.

"The report also reported an allegation that India interfered in a single Conservative Party leadership race....

"'CSIS did not advise the Conservative Party of Canada of any intelligence suggesting there was foreign interference in the leadership contest,' said Sarah Fischer, director of communications for the Conservative Party.... Fischer said Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's campaign received no notice of interference in his race and 'has no awareness of what is referenced.'

"In March 2023, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asked the NSICOP committee, which is made up of MPs and senators from across the political spectrum, to investigate allegations of Chinese interference in Canada's elections. He made the request after media reports, citing unnamed security sources and classified documents,  accused China of interfering in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections. Some of those reports also suggested that members of the Liberal government were aware of certain attempts at interference but didn't act.

"Monday's report marks the third time NSICOP has reviewed the government's response to threats of foreign interference since 2018 and Trudeau's trip to India — a point members make known throughout their latest report.

"'Given the risks posed by foreign interference to Canada's national security, the committee expected the government to act. It was slow to do so,' says the report. 'In the committee's view, this delay contributed in part to the crisis in which the government found itself in late 2022 and early 2023.'"

Read more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/conservative-leadership-race-interference-nsicop-1.7223518

Some MPs helping foreign actors meddle in Canadian politics, report says | CBC News: The National | June 3, 2024:

Canadian politicians trained by World Economic Forum

An investigation by two foundations finds seven current Trudeau government cabinet ministers who have graduated from World Economic Forum training programs. 

Sleuths find Trudeau cabinet ministers with WEF affiliation | Western Standard | Lee Harding: 

May 23. 2024 - "A comprehensive list of World Economic Forum young leaders reveals many Trudeau cabinet ministers and politicians of recent decades. The U.S.-based Malone Institute, founded by Robert W. Malone, and the Pharos Foundation in Sweden, looked at World Economic Forum (WEF) search engines and cross checked published lists, Wayback Machine archives, Wikispooks, and other complementary sources to compile the list. 

"It covers the WEF's Global Leaders of Tomorrow program from 1993 to 2003 and the Young Global Leaders which began in 2004.... [T]he Malone Institute's WEF page [says], 'These people have been intentionally and internationally deployed as foreign agents representing the interests of the WEF members to "penetrate the global cabinets of countries" as well as a wide range of ... sectors.' [WEF executive chairman[ Klaus Schwab stated at a discussion at Harvard University in 2017 that more than half of the Trudeau cabinet was on board with the WEF [see video]....

"According to the Malone / Pharos list, the names of Trudeau Liberal cabinet ministers past and present who graduated from WEF young leaders programs includes

• Chrystia Freeland (2000) Deputy Prime Minister
• Justin Trudeau (2005) Prime Minister
• Scott Brison (2005) Former Treasury Board President
• Francois-Philippe Champagne (2009) Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry
• Karina Gould (2010) Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
• Melanie Joly (2016) Minister of Foreign Affairs
• Terry Beech (2017) Minister of Citizens’ Services
• Maryam Monsef (2020) Former Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth
• Sean Fraser (2022) Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities

"The Trudeau cabinet had 18 women and 17 men in 2017, suggesting Schwab's boast of half the cabinet may have been exaggerated.

"Conservative MP Michelle Rempel (2016), and NDP MP and party leader Jagmeet Singh (2018) are also listed as WEF young leader alumni. 

"Andrew Scheer was removed from the Malone / Pharos list following a statement he made March 24, 2022.... Scheer wrote ... 'I am NOT a member of the WEF. I have never attended a meeting, conference, or any event sponsored or associated with the WEF. I have never been to Davos. I do not know why my profile was included on their Young Global Leaders website. Once it was brought to my attention, I demanded that the WEF remove me from their site. They have since complied.'

"Conservative MP and party leader Pierre Poilievre was listed in the 'uncertain' tab of the Malone / Pharos list, with no year of his alleged affiliation.... Poilievre has denied involvement and openly condemned the WEF agenda since becoming Conservative Party Leader.

"A Conservative Party petition condemns the attendance of 'Trudeau Liberals' at WEF 'conferences in Davos to give lectures on their radical woke agenda and hobnob with celebrities.... Therefore, we the undersigned support Pierre Poilievre in BANNING all his future Cabinet Ministers from attending WEF conferences, and demand that Justin Trudeau begins prioritizing Canadian workers over the interests of Davos elites.'

"Past politicians on the list include

• Bernard Valcourt (1993) Former ... Conservative Party cabinet minister
• Sheila Copps (1994) Former Liberal Deputy Prime Minister
• Jean Charest (1994) Former  ... Liberal Premier of Quebec
• Belinda Stronach (2002) former Conservative and Liberal MP
• Chris Alexander (2005) Conservative cabinet minister
• John Baird (2008) Conservative cabinet minister
• Kelly Leitch (2010) Conservative MP
• Naheed Nenshi (2011) Former Calgary mayor
• James Moore (2014) Conservative cabinet minister
• Dominique Anglade (2014) Former ... Leader of the Liberal Party of Quebec
• Brian Gallant (2015) Former Liberal Premier of New Brunswick."

Read more: https://www.westernstandard.news/news/sleuths-find-trudeau-cabinet-ministers-with-wef-affiliation/54337

Klaus Schwab "proud" to be "penetrating government cabinets" | Jeff Barlow | February 15, 2025:

Ramaswamy floats libertarian-nationalist alliance

Speaking at the 2024 Libertarian National Convention, tech entrepreneur and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy argued that the future of America depends on a libertarian-nationalist alliance.

No, Vivek Ramaswamy, a Libertarian-Nationalist Alliance Doesn't Make Sense | Reason | Eric Boehm:

May 25, 2024 - "While speaking at the Libertarian National Convention (LNC) on Friday, tech entrepreneur and failed GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy floated an idea upon which he said the 'future of this country depends'.... 'I believe that the future of this country depends on a libertarian-nationalist alliance that will save this country,' Ramaswamy argued from the main stage at the LNC.... Those comments were met with a smattering of boos from the crowd of Libertarian delegates — and for good reason. There are many factions of libertarians, of course, but the one belief that unites the movement is an understanding that individuals are best suited to make their own decisions about how to live. Nationalism, at its root, is a fundamentally collectivist idea that prioritizes the needs of the state over the choices of individuals.

"In off-stage comments to Reason at the LNC, Ramaswamy reiterated his belief in a libertarian-nationalist alliance. When pushed to explain how two seemingly opposing viewpoints could find common ground, he argued that the two are 'not overlapping objectives, but they are not in tension with one another.' 'When I say "nationalist," I mean a revival of our national identity,' Ramaswamy explained to Reason TV's Zach Weissmueller.... 'I don't think that's counter to libertarian principles at all. I think we've lost that national pride and identity in our country, and I think that is a foundational issue.'

"With all due respect to Ramaswamay, that's a load of crap. The current wave of nationalism sweeping the right wing of American politics is not about innocent-sounding things like restoring national pride. Its proponents are quite open about the fact that they want to grow the power of the state to pursue things like industrial policy, aggressive deportations, and even very silly stuff like banning lab-grown meat. That puts the two perspectives very much in tension. 

"In practice, libertarians advocate for decreasing the power of the state to control individual freedom. Nationalists have no qualms about limiting the free movement of people or goods if those restrictions are seen to be — or imagined to be — in the amorphous interests of the country (which really means in the best interest of whatever special interest manages to control the policymaking apparatus)....

"Of course, the obvious subtext of Ramaswamy's comments becomes clear once you recall that he's now an official surrogate for former President Donald Trump.... The deal Ramaswamy is really offering goes like this: libertarians should vote for Trump. There is no second part.

"Ramaswamy was once a college libertarian and may at times still espouse libertarian ideas — indeed, he was sometimes the most libertarian candidate on stage during the Republican primary debates earlier this year (though he was also often one of the loudest advocates for authoritarian ideas.) None of that matters right now, because Ramaswamy's job through the first week of November is convincing people to vote for Trump. Libertarians should not be naive about this....

"[P]olitics is the art of compromise and ... libertarian goals can be achieved (and must be achieved) by working with people who are not libertarians.... Libertarians should always be ready to nudge those in power toward decisions that increase freedom — but we have no obligation to help anyone achieve power....

"That matters, because Ramaswamy does not seem to be suggesting an acute alliance aimed at specific policy goals. His remarks to Reason and on stage at the LNC suggest a high-level, strategic alliance between two competing political philosophies for the purposes of increasing electoral success. That is, for the goal of achieving political power for its own sake. Libertarians ought to reject such will-to-power arguments—and boo anyone who makes them, as delegates to the LNC did. An electoral alliance with those who wish to enlarge the state's power over individuals, corporations, and markets is not the path to greater freedom."

Read more: https://reason.com/2024/05/25/no-vivek-ramaswamy-a-libertarian-nationalist-alliance-doesnt-make-sense/

Vivek Ramaswamy Libertarian Party Convention Highlights | Vivek Ramaswamy | May 25, 2024:

Libertarian Party formed in New Brunswick

 A Libertarian Party has been formed in New Brunswick, and has a website up. 

Libertarian Party of Canada leader Jacques Boudreau announces new party. Courtesy X.

About Us | Libertarian Party Of New Brunswick:

"Welcome to the Libertarian Party of New Brunswick, where we stand firmly on our principles to ensure all individuals have the freedom to live their lives and pursue their interests as they see fit, as long as they do no harm to another. Our core beliefs revolve around significantly reducing the size and intrusiveness of government, cutting and eliminating taxes at every opportunity, and allowing peaceful, honest people to offer their goods and services without inappropriate interference from the government.

"We believe in a society where peaceful, honest individuals can make their own decisions about how to live their lives, free from the fear of criminal or civil penalties. Founded in 2024, our party has been a consistent advocate for these principles, running many hundreds of candidates every election cycle to promote our vision of a freer, more prosperous New Brunswick.

"As part of the broader Libertarian movement, we are dedicated to expanding individual freedom to its furthest limits. We affirm the principles of no person or institution having the right to initiate the use of force or fraud against another, and that the only moral purpose of government is the preservation of individual rights. We also recognize the voluntary exchange of goods and services as essential for a free and prosperous society.

"By joining the Libertarian Party of New Brunswick, you’re not just becoming a member of a political party; you’re joining a community of like-minded individuals committed to making New Brunswick a better place for all. Together, we can work towards a future where individuals are empowered to make their own choices and live their lives to the fullest, without undue interference from government or other institutions."

Libertarian Party of 

New Brunswick

https://lpnb.ca/

Trump conviction rests on dubious reasoning

There was a glaring mismatch between the charges against the former president and what prosecutors described as the essence of his crime.

Trump's Conviction Suggests Jurors Bought the Prosecution's Dubious 'Election Fraud' Narrative | Reason | Jacob Sullum:

May 30.2024 -"After deliberating for a little more than a day, a Manhattan jury on Thursday found Donald Trump guilty of falsifying 34 business records to aid or conceal 'another crime,' an intent that turns what would otherwise be misdemeanors into felonies. If you assumed that the jury's conclusions would be driven by political animus, this first-ever criminal conviction of a former president is the result you probably expected in a jurisdiction where Democrats outnumber Republicans by 9 to 1. But in legal terms, the quick verdict is hard to fathom....

"Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's case against Trump stemmed from the $130,000 that Michael Cohen, then Trump's lawyer and fixer, paid porn star Stormy Daniels shortly before the 2016 presidential election to keep her from talking about her alleged 2006 sexual encounter with Trump. When Trump reimbursed Cohen in 2017, prosecutors said, he tried to cover up the arrangement with Daniels by pretending that he was paying Cohen, whom he had designated as his personal attorney, for legal work.... Cohen was the only witness who directly confirmed those two points.... But even without Cohen's testimony, there was strong circumstantial evidence that Trump approved the payoff and went along with the reimbursement scheme. The real problem for the prosecution was proving that Trump falsified business records  with 'an intent to commit another crime or to aid or conceal the commission thereof' — the element that was necessary to treat the misleading documents as felonies.... 

"According to one theory, Cohen made an excessive campaign contribution, thereby violating the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA), when he fronted the money to pay Daniels. Cohen pleaded guilty to that offense in 2018 as part of an agreement that also resolved several other, unrelated federal charges against him.... It is unclear whether Trump violated FECA by soliciting Cohen's 'contribution,' a question that hinges on the fuzzy distinction between personal and campaign expenditures. Given the uncertainty on that point, it is plausible that Trump did not think the Daniels payment was illegal, which helps explain why he was never prosecuted under FECA.... 

"According to a second theory, Trump facilitated a violation of New York tax law by allowing Cohen to falsely report his reimbursement as income. Although that violation is described as 'criminal tax fraud,' Merchan said it did not matter that Cohen's alleged misrepresentation resulted in a higher tax bill.... Putting aside that counterintuitive definition of tax fraud, this theory required believing that Trump, when he reimbursed Cohen, not only contemplated what would happen when Cohen filed his returns the following year but also thought that 'unlawful means' somehow would influence an election that had already happened. The logic here was hard to follow.

"Likewise with the third theory of 'unlawful means.' Prosecutors suggested that Trump's falsification of business records was designed to aid or conceal the falsification of other business records.... Prosecutors said the records related to Cohen's dummy corporation, for example, were falsified because they misrepresented the nature and purpose of that entity, which by itself is a misdemeanor. That misdemeanor was the 'unlawful means' by which Trump allegedly sought to promote his election, another misdemeanor. And because Trump allegedly tried to conceal the latter misdemeanor by falsifying the records related to Cohen's reimbursement, those records are 34 felonies instead of 34 misdemeanors. The theory that Trump falsified business records to conceal the falsification of business records was 'so circular as to produce vertigo in the jury room,' George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley said.... 

"To disguise the difficulties with its dueling theories, the prosecution averred that Trump committed 'election fraud'.... During his summation, prosecutor Joshua Steinglass called the nondisclosure agreement with Daniels 'a subversion of democracy.' He said it was an 'effort to hoodwink the American voter.' He told 'a sweeping story about a fraud on the American people,' as The New York Times put it. 'He argue[d] that the American people in 2016 had the right to determine whether they cared that Trump had slept with a porn star or not, and that the conspiracy prevented them from doing so.' Did the American people have such a right? If so, Trump would have violated it even he had merely asked Daniels to keep quiet, perhaps by appealing to her sympathy for his wife. If Daniels had agreed, the result would have been the same. As the prosecution told it, that still would amount to 'election fraud,' even though there is clearly nothing illegal about it. The jurors evidently bought this cover story....

"In short, there was a glaring mismatch between the charges against Trump and what prosecutors described as the essence of his crime, which is not a crime at all.... That approach suggests several possible grounds for appeal....

"Last week, New York Times columnist David French worried about the consequences of a conviction that is overturned on appeal. 'Imagine a scenario in which Trump is convicted at the trial, Biden condemns him as a felon and the Biden campaign runs ads mocking him as a convict,' he wrote. 'If Biden wins a narrow victory but then an appeals court tosses out the conviction, this case could well undermine faith in our democracy and the rule of law.' In his desperation to prevent Trump from reoccupying the White House, Bragg has already accomplished that."

Read more: https://reason.com/2024/05/30/the-verdict-against-trump-suggests-jurors-bought-the-prosecutions-dubious-election-fraud-narrative/

Donald Trump found guilty on all counts in hush money trial | CTV News | May 30, 2024: