Libertarian Democrat
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A libertarian Democrat is a person who subscribes to libertarian philosophy while typically voting for and being involved with the United States Democratic Party. Their views may differ from Libertarian Party members on some issues, and they may be referred to as "libertarian progressives".
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[edit] Principles
Libertarian Democrats support the civil libertarian aspect of freedom as well as supporting the kind of economic freedom that emphasizes removing corporate subsidies and other favoritism to special interests, and applying a responsible transition toward freedom - for example, some support a transition approach that includes certain trade restrictions on imports from countries that have very little freedom, so that more free trade with those countries would be phased in as they move toward more freedom.[1]
They are more likely than most Democrats to support same-sex marriage, tax cuts, the decriminalization of marijuana and the defense of gun rights. In contrast to Libertarian Party members or paleolibertarians, many libertarian Democrats favor some form of antitrust policy, especially in the case of land and natural resources, due to their view that land is a fundamentally different kind of property than products of human effort[2], but they typically remain open to "free-market solutions to environmental problems."[3] They differ from many progressive Democrats in that they tend to favor the restriction of government-provided services only to "any necessary services that cannot currently be provided adequately by the non-government sector (non-profit or for-profit groups)."[4] They are typically pro-choice but may be for or against the death penalty. They tend to favor limited government involvement in most areas of life.
[edit] History
The Historical libertarian Democrats can trace themselves back to the early 19th century with Presidents Thomas Jefferson and Andrew Jackson along with U.S. Representative Davy Crockett and civil rights activist Moorfield Storey.[5]. Libertarianism was represented in the Guilded Age by President Grover Cleveland. During the 20th Century the rise of the New Deal Democrat marginalized this group, though Senator William Proxmire was a prominant Libertarian Democrat.
The Democratic Freedom Caucus, (DFC), founded in 1996 by Hanno Beck, Mike O'Mara, and ex-Libertarian Party member Andrew Spark[6], is claimed by Paul Gagnon to represent what some see as the Democrats' growing libertarian Democratic movement.
[edit] Politicians and media personalities
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This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (May 2009) |
Notable Democratic politicians with libertarian ideas are U.S. Senators Russ Feingold, Jon Tester, and Jim Webb, U.S. Representatives G. K. Butterfield and Paul Hodes, as well as Governors Bill Richardson and Brian Schweitzer. Notable Democratic media personalities with libertarian ideas are Camille Paglia, Denis Leary, Bill Maher, Stephen Colbert, Markos Moulitsas the founder of DailyKos, and Terry Michael, the former press secretary for the Democratic National Committee, who has been called "....quite possibly the original self-described 'libertarian Democrat'" by Nick Gillespie, editor-in-chief of Reason.com and Reason.TV.[7]
[edit] See also
- Bourbon Democrat
- Geolibertarianism
- Georgism
- Green libertarianism
- Left libertarianism
- Libertarian Republican
[edit] References
- ^ "DFC Platform". Democratic Freedom Caucus. http://www.democraticfreedomcaucus.org/dfc-platform/. Retrieved on 2007-09-16.
- ^ "DFC Platform". Democratic Freedom Caucus. http://www.democraticfreedomcaucus.org/dfc-platform/. Retrieved on 2007-09-16.
- ^ Capozzi, Robert (2005-04-14). "Another Approach: The Democratic Freedom Caucus". The Free Liberal. http://www.freeliberal.com/archives/001005.html. Retrieved on 2007-09-16.
- ^ "DFC Platform". Democratic Freedom Caucus. http://www.democraticfreedomcaucus.org/dfc-platform/. Retrieved on 2007-09-16.
- ^ Root, Damon W. (December 2007). "The Party of Jefferson: What the Democrats can learn from a dead libertarian lawyer". Reason Magazine. http://www.reason.com/news/show/123020.html.
- ^ Capozzi, Robert (2005-04-14). "Another Approach: The Democratic Freedom Caucus". The Free Liberal. http://www.freeliberal.com/archives/001005.html. Retrieved on 2007-09-16.
- ^ Gillespie, Nick (January 11, 2007) "Why Won't the Dems Show Some Leadership on Iraq?", www.reason.com. Retrieved on 2009-07-16.
