Libertarian Party presidential debate was last night, follow up next week | Examiner.com - Karl Dickey:
April 2, 2016 - "Last night, April 1, 2016, three of the top Libertarian Party presidential candidates ... discussed the issues of the day on the Fox Business Network with John Stossel. Another segment of the taped 'Libertarian Presidential Forum will air next Friday via John Stossel's show on Fox Business. The three candidates who were invited to the debate are Gary Johnson, John McAfee and Austin Petersen....
"Many topics were tackled including abortion, foreign aid, same-sex marriage, the death penalty and many others. While Petersen was pro-life, Johnson and McAfee said they are pro-choice. All the candidates said they would eliminate foreign aid especially when it came to its misuse. All of the candidates were against intervention [into any] other country's domestic affairs.
"Stossel asked the candidates when is the right time to go to war. Johnson answered simply, "When attacked.' McAfee turned the question around by saying, 'My question is why do we have war. I mean we are operating under the assumption that war is a necessity. I don't buy that.' Petersen stated ... 'Only if the Congress declares war Constitutionally is it right. If we have a significant threat there are circumstances when the United States may go to war but can only do so with due process'....
"Petersen promoted his Penny Plan in an effort to get to a federally balanced budget.... Petersen is suggesting an across the board cut of one percent of all federal programs. For those programs Congress would not want to cut, that one percent would need to come from another program equally and correspondingly....
"Johnson said, 'I want to support those who are truly in need. I think the biggest issue facing this country right now the fact that government is too big, it spends too much money, it taxes too much. I would be proposing a balanced budget to Congress which would be a 20 percent reduction in federal spending, and to do that, you've got to include Medicaid, Medicare, military spending and to do that you could devolve Medicaid and Medicare to the states'....
"McAfee responded, 'let's look at the Social Security Administration. It is the second largest drain on the federal budget, over $700 billion and yet everyone on Social Security paid money that they worked hard to earn into a system that the government promised would pay them back when they were older. Now, that is a commitment that we made as a government and as Libertarians do we not meet our commitments?'
"Stossel challenged each of their candidates to defend themselves where the general public may take issue. For Johnson, Stossel said that Johnson was too 'low key' and that Johnson admits to occasionally smoking marijuana. Johnson responded, "Well, I'm one of over 130 million people in that category'....
"Stossel challenged McAfee that he 'sounds a little flaky' and how ... he was famously suspected of murdering his neighbor in Belize which prompted him to escape to Guatemala. McAfee said, 'I was never charged with murder.... I did indeed escape into Guatemala.... I was asked for a $2 million 'donation' for the ruling government. I said 'no' and exactly one week later my property was raided by 42 armed soldiers who shot my dog in front of my eyes, tortured me and destroyed half my property.'
"Petersen was ... asked about his young age. Petersen responded by saying ... "On July 4, 1776 Thomas Jefferson was 33 years old, James Madison was 25 years old, Marquis de Lafayette was 18 and Alexander Hamilton was 18. It was young men who founded this country and young people will restore it. Young people will take our country back'....
"The Libertarian Party will select its presidential nominee late next month at their national 'Legalize Freedom' convention in Orlando, Florida."
Read more: http://www.examiner.com/article/libertarian-party-presidential-debate-was-last-night-follow-up-next-week
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April 2, 2016 - "Last night, April 1, 2016, three of the top Libertarian Party presidential candidates ... discussed the issues of the day on the Fox Business Network with John Stossel. Another segment of the taped 'Libertarian Presidential Forum will air next Friday via John Stossel's show on Fox Business. The three candidates who were invited to the debate are Gary Johnson, John McAfee and Austin Petersen....
"Many topics were tackled including abortion, foreign aid, same-sex marriage, the death penalty and many others. While Petersen was pro-life, Johnson and McAfee said they are pro-choice. All the candidates said they would eliminate foreign aid especially when it came to its misuse. All of the candidates were against intervention [into any] other country's domestic affairs.
"Stossel asked the candidates when is the right time to go to war. Johnson answered simply, "When attacked.' McAfee turned the question around by saying, 'My question is why do we have war. I mean we are operating under the assumption that war is a necessity. I don't buy that.' Petersen stated ... 'Only if the Congress declares war Constitutionally is it right. If we have a significant threat there are circumstances when the United States may go to war but can only do so with due process'....
"Petersen promoted his Penny Plan in an effort to get to a federally balanced budget.... Petersen is suggesting an across the board cut of one percent of all federal programs. For those programs Congress would not want to cut, that one percent would need to come from another program equally and correspondingly....
"Johnson said, 'I want to support those who are truly in need. I think the biggest issue facing this country right now the fact that government is too big, it spends too much money, it taxes too much. I would be proposing a balanced budget to Congress which would be a 20 percent reduction in federal spending, and to do that, you've got to include Medicaid, Medicare, military spending and to do that you could devolve Medicaid and Medicare to the states'....
"McAfee responded, 'let's look at the Social Security Administration. It is the second largest drain on the federal budget, over $700 billion and yet everyone on Social Security paid money that they worked hard to earn into a system that the government promised would pay them back when they were older. Now, that is a commitment that we made as a government and as Libertarians do we not meet our commitments?'
"Stossel challenged each of their candidates to defend themselves where the general public may take issue. For Johnson, Stossel said that Johnson was too 'low key' and that Johnson admits to occasionally smoking marijuana. Johnson responded, "Well, I'm one of over 130 million people in that category'....
"Stossel challenged McAfee that he 'sounds a little flaky' and how ... he was famously suspected of murdering his neighbor in Belize which prompted him to escape to Guatemala. McAfee said, 'I was never charged with murder.... I did indeed escape into Guatemala.... I was asked for a $2 million 'donation' for the ruling government. I said 'no' and exactly one week later my property was raided by 42 armed soldiers who shot my dog in front of my eyes, tortured me and destroyed half my property.'
"Petersen was ... asked about his young age. Petersen responded by saying ... "On July 4, 1776 Thomas Jefferson was 33 years old, James Madison was 25 years old, Marquis de Lafayette was 18 and Alexander Hamilton was 18. It was young men who founded this country and young people will restore it. Young people will take our country back'....
"The Libertarian Party will select its presidential nominee late next month at their national 'Legalize Freedom' convention in Orlando, Florida."
Read more: http://www.examiner.com/article/libertarian-party-presidential-debate-was-last-night-follow-up-next-week
'via Blog this'
