Donnelly explains libertarianism to the voter

Less government is main focus for Libertarian candidate Darcy Neal Donnelly: James Morgan, The Review:

October 1, 2019 - "The best government is very little government, according to Darcy Neal Donnelly. The Libertarian Party of Canada candidate in Glengarry-Prescott-Russell has been part of a combination of three federal and provincial elections in the past.

“'There’s only so many laws our country needs,. said Donnelly. He explained that the only necessary laws are for protecting individual rights, freedoms, and markets. The Libertarian Party supports having police, courts and the military for the purpose of protection, and not control....

"Donnelly explained that the government has given big corporations the right to pollute and that property rights should be the basis of environmental protection.  He said that the environment would be better protected by private owners who had to take responsibility for it, including for environmentally significant places like national parks.

"When asked about ethics issues like the SNC Lavalin scandal, Donnelly said problems like corruption occur when governments and corporations are too big.  He ... strongly criticized the spending of taxpayer dollars on 'corporate welfare.'  As an example, he referred to the $18 million in support the Trudeau government announced over the summer for Heico, the American parent company of Ivaco Rolling Mills in L’Original.

"According to Donnelly, Canada has a mixed economy containing some free markets.... The Libertarian Party wants a free market for everything....

"Donnelly said the Libertarian Party would end the federal income tax for everyone and the government’s sources of revenue would be through trade and voluntary gifts.  Health care and social services for the less fortunate could be provided through benevolent organizations.  He highlighted how successful private institutions such as Shriners Hospitals are, as an example.

"Libertarians see themselves as influencers on other parties, said Donnelly.  He said the party is not totally dedicated to some day governing, but tries to influence existing candidates and parties with its ideas.  He said the People’s Party of Canada, led by Maxime Bernier has ideas that represent 80 per cent of what the Libertarians have been recommending, and he is pleased that they have had that influence on Bernier’s party."

Read more: https://thereview.ca/2019/10/01/less-government-is-main-focus-for-libertarian-candidate-darcy-neal-donnelly/
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55% of Americans want to decriminalize all drugs

Majority Of Americans Support Decriminalizing All Drugs, Poll Finds | Marijuana Moment - Kyle Jaeger:

October 2, 2019 - "A majority of Americans are in favor of decriminalizing all drugs, according to a survey by the libertarian think tank Cato Institute.

"The poll, which involved phone interviews with 1,700 adults, showed that 55 percent of Americans want to treat drug offenses like civil infractions that don’t carry jail time, as opposed to the current criminalization model. While numerous surveys have found majority support for marijuana legalization, few if any polls have previously shown such strong support for a wholesale overhaul of American drug policy.

"Participants were asked to answer whether they’d 'favor or oppose re-categorizing drug offenses from felonies to civil offenses, meaning they would be treated like minor traffic violations rather than crimes.'

"Democrats were the most likely to support drug decriminalization, with 69 percent in favor and 30 percent opposed. A majority of those who identified as independent also embraced the policy, at 54 percent. Forty percent of Republicans said they want to lower criminal penalties for drug offenses, while 59 percent in the GOP said they opposed the proposed change.

"Interestingly, people who self-identify as libertarian were ten percentage points less likely to support decriminalization (59 percent) than Democrats, despite the hands-off policy fitting squarely within a libertarian ideology. Those most aligned with Cato Institute’s libertarian perspective are even less embracive of lifting criminal penalties for drug offenses than are respondents who identified themselves as very liberal, with 75 percent of that group in favor.

"There was majority support for drug decriminalization among men (55 percent) and women (53 percent) in the poll, which was conducted from March 5-8 and released last week. A majority of people from all age groups and racial backgrounds, except Latinos, back the policy.

"Drug decriminalization is gaining traction as more people view addiction as a public health, rather than criminal justice, issue.... Twenty U.S. prosecutors visited Portugal to learn about the country’s drug decriminalization model in July.... Also this summer, a Canadian House Committee recommended that the country decriminalize all drugs, and shortly thereafter a lawmaker filed a bill to do so, though it didn’t receive a vote."

Read more: https://www.marijuanamoment.net/majority-of-americans-support-decriminalizing-all-drugs-poll-finds/
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Commons health committee: Decriminalize drugs

Key Canadian House Committee Recommends Decriminalizing All Drugs | Marijuana Moment - Kyle Jaeger:

June 14, 2019 - "A House of Commons committee in Canada is calling for the government to decriminalize the simple possession of all drugs in an effort to address addiction as a public health issue. In a report released this week, the Standing Committee on Health described what its members learned on a tour across the country to examine the impacts of rising rates of methamphetamine addiction....

"The panel recommended that the government “'work with provinces, territories, municipalities and Indigenous communities and law enforcement agencies to decriminalize the simple possession of small quantities of illicit substances.' Further, it advised the government to 'undertake an evaluation of Portugal’s approach to the decriminalization of simple possession of illicit substances and examine how it could be positively applied to Canada.'

"Conservative members of the committee disagreed with several recommendations, the report stated, including the expansion of safe injection sites where people can use illicit substances in a medically supervised environment. However, the opposition party did not outright oppose decriminalization; instead, its members argued that such a policy must have 'the fulsome measures taken in countries like Portugal.'

"Witnesses told the panel that those measures include 'a scaling up of treatment programs and the creation of diversions programs for offenders who commit crimes related to their substance use disorders,' the document notes.

"The report also details how committee members encountered a pervasive negative attitude toward people with addiction, including from health professionals. Removing criminal penalties associated with drug use would be one step toward destigmatizing the health conditions, they argued.

"Members of the country’s ruling Liberal Party passed a non-binding resolution in support of decriminalization in April. But while Prime Minister Justin Trudeau campaigned on marijuana legalization, he shut the idea of broader drug decriminalization down, stating that 'on that particular issue, as I’ve said, it’s not part of our plans.' Nevertheless, some lawmakers from his party have expressed interest in reviving efforts to pursue decriminalization through legislation....

"Meanwhile, 20 U.S. prosecutors from major cities ... embarked on a trip to Portugal [in May] to see the impact of the country’s decriminalization policy firsthand."

Read more: https://www.marijuanamoment.net/key-canadian-house-committee-recommends-decriminalizing-all-drugs/

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BC judge returns forfeited $2 million to accused

Court ruling releases $2 million back to accused in B.C.’s biggest money-laundering case | Vancouver Sun - Gordon Hoekstra:

September 13, 2019 - "A B.C. Supreme Court judge has ruled that an interim freeze of assets in B.C.’s biggest money-laundering case was done improperly, and has ordered the release of $2 million in cash to the accused.

"In a ruling released Friday, B.C. Supreme Court associate chief justice Heather Holmes concluded the Civil Forfeiture Office did not provide a fair and complete legal basis to consider the need for an urgent freeze on the cash, a $2-million house, casino chips, gift cards and jewelry. Providing a fair and complete legal basis was particularly important, according to Holmes’ ruling, given that the decision took place in an ex parte hearing, where the defence lawyer was not present.... Holmes agreed to another freeze order on the other assets, but excluded the cash.

"In the civil forfeiture suit, Caixan Qin and her spouse Jian Jun Zhu are accused of running an underground bank in Richmond, called Silver International, that allegedly laundered as much as $220 million a year. The pair have denied any wrongdoing and said that search and seizures violated their Charter rights....

"The ... civil forfeiture case ... was launched immediately after criminal money-laundering charges were stayed against Qin and Zhu in late 2018. The threshold for proving a civil claim is lower than for a criminal conviction, a balance of probabilities rather than beyond a reasonable doubt. Provincial prosecutors were hoping to hit the accused in the pocketbook....

"Holmes noted that the lawyer for the civil forfeiture office allowed no room for opposing views of law, made no apparent effort to put forward the position the defendants’ lawyer would have taken, and also misstated the law on one foundation point that favoured the civil forfeiture office’s position.

“'The court must take the misconduct very seriously, because misleading statements in an ex parte hearing undermine the integrity of the process, and may even obliterate it,' wrote the judge.

"Following the stay in the criminal case, Holmes, who also presided in that case, had ordered the cash be returned to Qin and Zhu.

"The civil forfeiture office has 30 days to appeal the decision."

Read more: https://vancouversun.com/business/local-business/court-ruling-releases-2-million-back-to-accused-in-b-c-s-biggest-money-laundering-case
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U.S. House passes SAFE Banking Act

Nearing finish line, fight for cannabis banking bill shifts to the Senate | TheHill - Sylvan Lane & Alex Gangitano:

October 1, 2019 - "The House in a strong bipartisan vote last week passed the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act, which would allow banks and financial institutions to work with cannabis businesses. The bill now faces an uncertain future in the Republican-held Senate....

"The unusual coalition of financial sector lobbyists, progressive lawmakers, law enforcement officials and cannabis businesses backing the bill cheered the House vote ... which saw 229 Democrats, 91 Republicans and one Independent back the bill....

"Advocates for legalization and a financial services sector eager to tap a fast-growing industry have united behind the SAFE Banking Act. The bill would prohibit federal regulators from penalizing banks or credit unions for serving cannabis businesses that comply with state laws. It’s a top priority for a cadre of powerful financial services lobbying groups, including the American Bankers Association (ABA), the Independent Community Bankers of America and the Credit Union National Association.

"The focus is now on the Senate Banking Committee and its chairman, Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), who has pledged to take action on the issue. While Crapo is personally opposed to marijuana legalization, he told CQ last week that his panel will consider the SAFE Banking Act or a similar bill 'as soon as we can'....

"But ... GOP senators have shown little interest in grappling with the controversy over cannabis. Only two GOP senators attended a July Banking panel hearing on the bill: Crapo and Sen. Cory Gardner (Colo.), one of only five Republican co-sponsors of the Senate version of the bill....

"Bill supporters have taken steps to win over Republican backing, in particular from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). The House version included a measure to ease regulations on hemp businesses, a crucial industry in McConnell’s home state of Kentucky. McConnell, who could make or break the measure, helped secure a provision to lift federal penalties on hemp production in the 2018 farm bill. But McConnell ... has also spoken out against legalizing marijuana and called cannabis hemp’s 'illicit cousin.' A spokesman for McConnell declined to comment."

Read more: https://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/463932-nearing-finish-line-fight-for-cannabis-banking-bill-shifts-to-the-senate
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Balfour backs Bernier in Haliburton

Balfour backs Bernier, runs for PPC - Chad Ingram, Haliburton Echo:

"September 17, 2019 - "Gene Balfour says his decision to run for the People’s Party of Canada in October’s federal election has a lot to do with the party’s leader, former Conservative cabinet minister Maxime Bernier.

"Balfour’s name may be familiar, as he ran in Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock for the Ontario Libertarian Party during the 2018 provincial election. This will actually be Balfour’s seventh run in the political realm, having run as a Libertarian candidate five times [at] the provincial and once previously at the federal level in 2015.


"'I was fully planning to run for the Libertarian Party of Canada,' he says. However, Balfour was in attendance at a Libertarian conference, “and the night before the conference kicked off, I met Maxime Bernier.' 'It seemed to me that Maxime Bernier was very much like me,” Balfour says. “He was a Libertarian conservative.'

"Bernier lost the bid for the Conservative Party of Canada leadership to Andrew Scheer in 2017, and quit the party in August of 2018, vowing to start his own party [s]aying he would run a candidate in all of the country’s 338 ridings.... 'I’ve never seen a leader like this in my life,' Balfour says. 'Here’s a man who goes from zero and he’s got 320 candidates registered. Who does that?'

"Balfour is a retired professional recruiter who worked in the IT industry and resides in Fenelon Falls. He promotes libertarian philosophies such as personal freedoms, fewer regulations, less taxation and smaller government....

"Balfour says that while knocking on people’s doors, 'the first thing they’re going to ask you about it is immigration. They feel the Liberals, they’re looking after other people, they’re not looking after Canadians.' 'We can’t help our veterans,' Balfour says, adding that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau seems to have money to give other nations for climate change initiatives. 'There’s a lot of anger out there against Justin.'

"On climate change, Balfour is opposed to any form of carbon pricing or carbon taxation. He says there are essentially two things any government can do. The first is pass legislation.
'The other thing they can do is ... throw money at the cause.' Balfour says the issue of climate change is too complex and far-reaching to be solved in this manner....

"In terms of himself, 'I have a background in economics,' Balfour says. 'All politicians must, in my view, look through the lens of economics.'

Read more: http://www.haliburtonecho.ca/balfour-backs-bernier-runs-for-ppc

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2 Meriden CT Libertarians cut from ballot

Two Libertarian candidates in Meriden denied ballot access - Mary Ellen Godin, Meriden Record-Journal:

September 25, 2019 — "Two Libertarian candidates won’t be on November’s ballot after the Secretary of the State’s office rejected their state party’s endorsement letters.

"According to Roger Misbach, the Libertarian party had gathered enough petitions to put a placeholder, his wife Ellen Misbach, on the ballot for mayor. Roger Misbach originally intended to run for a City Council seat in Area 4, but after learning that incumbent Mayor Kevin Scarpati was running unopposed at the time, he decided to run for mayor. Scarpati, who is not affiliated with any party, has since been challenged by Republican Ernestine Holloway, a petitioning candidate....

"The state Libertarian Party sent endorsement letters to the Secretary of the State’s office for Roger Misbach for mayor and Ellen Misbach for Area 4, different than what the submitted petitions had read. 'We didn’t put that one candidate (Ellen) was ‘withdrawing’ and ‘replaced with’ in there,' Misbach said.

"The Misbachs were approved to appear on the ballot, but on Sept. 18 Party Chairman Dan Reale received an email from the Secretary of the State’s office saying the names on the petitions differed from the state party’s endorsement letters and they would not be on the ballot....

"Misbach and the state Libertarian Party intend to challenge the decision, despite it being too late for November’s election, he said. 'There is no statute we can find that says the letter has to be drafted that way,' Misbach said. “Obviously it’s somebody’s interpretation. This happens to the Independent and other third parties'....

"A spokesman for the Secretary of the State’s office said the office received petitions for one candidate and endorsements for another. A withdrawal in writing or even crossing off one name and adding another before the deadline would have sufficed....

"The party's position is that we have used placeholder candidates for decades and had no issue doing so,” Reale said in an e-mail. 'What was done — arbitrarily denying any Libertarian Party candidate ballot access for either position, is downright arbitrary and unconstitutional. The party has adopted a zero tolerance policy for these sort of things because they have continued to waste valuable resources and time we could otherwise spend campaigning and giving the voters a choice they want and the relief they desperately have waited for.'

"Libertarian candidate Richard Cordero is on the ballot in the Area 1 City Council race."

Read more: http://www.myrecordjournal.com/News/Meriden/Meriden-News/Libertarian-candidates-denied-ballot-access.html
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