Jesse Ventura says his only path to the White House is as an independent. Image courtesy of CafePress.com.
Jesse Ventura Wants to Run for President
By Mark Wachtler
October 19, 2014. Dellwood, MN. (ONN) Former Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura says he wants to run for US President in 2016. But the former professional wrestler and current cable TV host has some requests and conditions. He also has some surprisingly outrageous comments and a fixation on race that may doom his effort before it starts. But as always, Jesse ‘the Governor’ Ventura means what he says and says what he means. Here’s the latest news on his possible bid for the White House.
People ‘in the know’
Thanks to a heads-up from our good friend Jeff4Justice and his YouTube channel, there are a couple recent grassroots news interviews with various people ‘in the know’ about a potential bid for President in 2016 by Jesse Ventura, including one interview with the man himself. What they reveal, and what Ventura confirms, is that the former Governor truly wants to run for US President in 2016.
The article explains what Jesse will require in order to make a run:
Jeff asks Jesse Ventura’s son Tyrel Ventura about the possibility of his dad running for President in 2016. The younger Ventura explains, “That all depends. He has to see a grassroots movement from the citizens of this country to get him ballot access in all 50 states. And then be willing to march on Washington with him if they don’t allow him to debate. But he has to see the citizenry go through the necessary steps to get him on the ballot.”
Illustrating Jeff4Justice’s political prowess, he then prods Tyrel Ventura for an update on Jesse’s reaction to the grassroots movement currently underway to draft his father for President, including the website JesseVentura2016.com and the Jesse Ventura 2016 Facebook page. “Has he seen any of it yet?” Jeff asks, “There are some websites that have been developed. Has he seen any signs that are getting him excited?” Jesse’s son Tyrel replies, “I’m sure he’s always excited. I haven’t talked to him recently to find out how it’s going. But he’s leaving it up to the people.”
Then, there are a couple of very interesting paragraphs about the Libertarian Party:
Smashing Interviews Magazine’s Melissa Parker then gets to the question everyone’s been waiting for, “Governor, have you decided yet whether you will run for president or vice-president in 2016?” Ventura replied, “No. I haven’t decided. I spoke to Roger Stone, the guy who used to be the big republican operative. He’s with the libertarians now. I had him on my show, and he told me, ‘You can go with the libertarians if you go to the convention. I guarantee you they’ll give you the nomination and put you on the ballot in probably every state.’”
Jesse Ventura went on to all but dismiss the option of accepting a possible Libertarian Party nomination for President, even though he officially endorsed the LP’s 2012 Presidential nominee Gary Johnson. “So it’s out there for me,” he acknowledges of the Libertarian ballot line, “But my problem is that I would then have to be part of a party. If I were to run for president, I believe the way I would win is that I would need to be part of no party.”
The article in its entirety can be read here .
Much like a parasite is “with the host.”
Except that Gingrich actually did run for the Republican nomination in 2012.
“Kane is certainly a top-tier talent in the WWE. He feuded with The Phenom, for crying out loud. He’s been a main-eventer multiple times. He had some of the most important storylines.”
Kane was never THE guy like Rock, Austin, Hogan, etc,, but he was a big part of the Attitude Era. And thanks to his new (and IMO stupid) gimmick of “Corporate Kane”, we know he looks good in a suit. Now if he runs we just have to figure out how to make flames come out of the podium during the debate.
“millions or dollars”
Should read, “million of dollars…”
“Robert Capozzi
October 23, 2014 at 11:47 am
Yes, to expect someone like GJ to give money on top of his time would be asking too much. If Peter Thiel wanted to run and make a contribution…that I can see.”
Many Libertarian Party candidates have put their own money into their races over the years. I do not think that a candidate should “have” to put their own money into their race, I’m just saying that it is something that has happened frequently, and should be encouraged for those who can afford it (although I would not make it a necessary prerequisite to be a candidate).
The bigger issue is that unless somebody is worth hundreds of millions or dollars, or is a billionaire, they probably would not have enough money to have a great effect on a Presidential race, given that the cost of running for President is so high. They may be able to make a sizeable enough donation to put the campaign into a position where it can gain more visibility and then be able to raise more money, but that’s about it.
I have issues with Ventura, but being libertarian is not an all or nothing endeavor (if it is, we might as well close down the LP, since we’d be saying that most people shouldn’t vote for us.) He’s not all that far from some left-libertarians.
Also, I don’t see the defamation lawsuit as an issue. Our appeal is largely in the anti-war camp, not the camp that worships the guy for being a great sniper. He lied about Ventura and Ventura won the suit. If someone worships Kyle, I suspect they were not going to vote Libertarian regardless of who we ran.
Kane is certainly a top-tier talent in the WWE. He feuded with The Phenom, for crying out loud. He’s been a main-eventer multiple times. He had some of the most important storylines.
Yes, to expect someone like GJ to give money on top of his time would be asking too much. If Peter Thiel wanted to run and make a contribution…that I can see.
“Matt Cholko
October 23, 2014 at 12:42 am
For the record, I do not think that candidates should sink a lot of their own money in their campaigns. Not alt-party campaigns, anyway. I definitely would not advise anyone to put 10% of their net worth into it.”
If a person can afford to do it, I hope that they do sink a lot of their own money in the race. I’d love it if some mega-millionaire or billionaire candidate who was a hardcore libertarian put a lot of their own money into a race. I’d do it myself if I were that rich.
For the record, I do not think that candidates should sink a lot of their own money in their campaigns. Not alt-party campaigns, anyway. I definitely would not advise anyone to put 10% of their net worth into it.
It was later than that when he said he believes he is not eligible due to his beliefs about what constitutes a native born citizen.
I met Glenn Jacobs in person at the 2008 LP National Convention in Denver. During the course of one of my conversations with him, I asked him about running for President or other offices. He said that he does not like politicians (except for somebody like Ron Paul), and that he does not really like the idea of becoming one, however, he also said he would not rule out running for office, and that he’d consider it for the future.
No kidding. I already said I disagree with his interpretation of the law, as do the courts.
But that is still what he believes the law is and how it should be interpreted, so he is not willing to run due to that reason, and you can’t force a person to run if he doesn’t want to just because you and some other people want him to.
“and Jacobs’ money pushed it to $2.2MM, that would be a noticeable difference to third party people. But, I’d bet that his money would also help bring in additional donations. So, maybe $3MM could happen. That, IMHO, has the potential to be a difference that is noticeable to the general public.”
The Harry Browne campaign raised around $2 million back in 2000. I think that the LNC also raised around $2 million in 2000.
I don’t think that $3 million would make that big of a difference in 2016. Also, keep in mind that there has been 16 years of inflation since the year 2000. I think that with the a good marketing campaign, Glenn Jacobs for President could raise a lot more than $3 million.
“Matt Cholko
October 22, 2014 at 9:02 pm
Well, if Jacobs is willing to spend 10% of his net worth on his campaign ($700k, if Andy’s source is correct), that actually may make a difference by LP POTUS campaign standards. If the campaign raised the usual $1.5MM on its own, and Jacobs’ money pushed it to $2.2MM, that would be a noticeable difference to third party people. But, I’d bet that his money would also help bring in additional donations. So, maybe $3MM could happen. That, IMHO, has the potential to be a difference that is noticeable to the general public.
Of course, the amount of money that a candidate is willing to put into their campaign is only one factor in whether or not they would make a candidate. But, all else being equal, I’d take Jacobs with $700k over an equal candidate with $0.”
I don’t think that it is reasonable to expect candidates to sink a lot of their own money into a race. Maybe if they were really rich, like say they were worth tens of millions, or hundreds of millions, or if they were billionaires.
I looked up Gary Johnson’s financial disclosure statement (apparently, candidates for President have to file one). It said that Gary Johnson is worth $10 million. Did Gary Johnson put any of his own money into his Presidential run? If so, how much did he put into the race out of his own pocket? I did not hear about Gary Johnson putting any of his own money into the race.
Glenn Jacobs is rich, but he is nowhere near rich enough to effect a Presidential race. You’d need a candidate who was worth hundreds of millions of dollars, or who was a billionaire, and who was willing to sink a good chunk of their own money into the race, in order to have a big effect on a Presidential race.
I think that Glenn Jacobs would have the ability to raise a lot of money. Why? Because he’s already famous from his wrestling career, plus he’s been making a name for himself over the last 7 or 8 years for his pro-liberty activism. He’s also a good public speaker, and I believe that he’d have the ability to inspire a lot of people to donate.
“Jed Ziggler
October 22, 2014 at 10:28 pm
That’s because, I’ll say this again, JESSE VENTURA IS NOT A LIBERTARIAN. I like Jesse, but he’s not a libertarian. He has more in common with the Greens.”
Jesse Ventura is not really in line with Greens. He disagrees with Greens on several issues. For instance, years ago I remember he was at some event and he was asked by somebody who wanted to go to college for art what the government should do to help him. Jesse’s reply was something along the lines of (this is not an exact quote, but close enough), “The government should not do anything to help you. If you want money, then sell some art.” Contrast this with 2012 Green Party candidate for President Jill Stein, who thinks that the government should provide free college education for everyone (never mind the fact that the tax payers would have to pay for it, so it would not really be free).
I’d say that Jesse Ventura has a mix of views. Some of his views are libertarian, but some are not. I think that he’d fall somewhere around the portion of the Nolan Chart between Libertarian and Centrist, maybe a little bit to the left, although he does hold some views are more traditionally found among Conservatives, such as supporting gun rights.
“paulie
October 22, 2014 at 9:32 pm
He has said that he believes he is ineligible because he was born in Spain (to American parents who lived on a US military base; I’m not sure if the hospital was off base). I believe his interpretation of the law is incorrect but that is what he believes, or did anyway.”
Glenn Jacobs was born on an American military base in Spain. John McCain was born in Panama, apparently on an American military base, and he was still able to run for President.
“Matt Cholko
October 22, 2014 at 9:57 pm
Well, if it is legally questionable, I would probably not support him for the nomination. The NSGOP would use it to have us thrown off the ballot all over the place, or spend tons of money fighting in court to stay on. They’ll do enough of that with an unquestionably legitimate candidate.”
The Republican Party would look pretty hypocritical then, because they ran John McCain for President, and he was born on an American military base in Panama (as I said above).
Even if Glenn Jacobs does not run for President, he’d be a great candidate for some other office.
That’s because, I’ll say this again, JESSE VENTURA IS NOT A LIBERTARIAN. I like Jesse, but he’s not a libertarian. He has more in common with the Greens.
Also, I’ll say that there’s a difference between questioning the official story, and being a nut. Questioning the official story on 9/11 is sensible, claiming or suggesting that it was a false flag/inside job makes you a nut. Questioning whether JFK was the only shooter is sensible. Claiming he was killed by LBJ, the Cubans, the Russians etc. makes you a nut. Questioning the moon landing… well no that just makes you a nut.
He’s libertarian when it suits him.
It’s really not questionable, under that same incorrect interpretation of the law John McCain is also ineligible. But he thinks that’s what the law really is regardless of how courts have interpreted it.
I haven’t been able to find it on Facebook because it was more than a week ago, but Jesse said something to the effect that “there should be a law that no one can make more than $36,000,000 per year.” I’m not sure what prompted the statement, but it certainly doesn’t sound very Libertarian for me.
Well, if it is legally questionable, I would probably not support him for the nomination. The NSGOP would use it to have us thrown off the ballot all over the place, or spend tons of money fighting in court to stay on. They’ll do enough of that with an unquestionably legitimate candidate.
He has said that he believes he is ineligible because he was born in Spain (to American parents who lived on a US military base; I’m not sure if the hospital was off base). I believe his interpretation of the law is incorrect but that is what he believes, or did anyway.
Well, if Jacobs is willing to spend 10% of his net worth on his campaign ($700k, if Andy’s source is correct), that actually may make a difference by LP POTUS campaign standards. If the campaign raised the usual $1.5MM on its own, and Jacobs’ money pushed it to $2.2MM, that would be a noticeable difference to third party people. But, I’d bet that his money would also help bring in additional donations. So, maybe $3MM could happen. That, IMHO, has the potential to be a difference that is noticeable to the general public.
Of course, the amount of money that a candidate is willing to put into their campaign is only one factor in whether or not they would make a candidate. But, all else being equal, I’d take Jacobs with $700k over an equal candidate with $0.
I know that Andy has often mentioned that he’d like to see Glenn Jacobs run for POTUS. But, has he ever indicated that he’s considering doing so?
I think that was Andy.
pf: There have been numerous surveys that indicate that a large percentage of Americans do not believe the official government stories about 9/11, the JFK assassination, etc… Many Americans know that government officials routinely lie and engage in conspiracies.
me: OK, could be. First, though, voters is a subset of Americans. If voters were interested in conspiracy theories, I’d think some candidates would share conspiracy theories to gain votes.
We also don’t know about the intensity of conspiracy theory adherence. JV and Andy might be 10s, but maybe a good chunk of voters might be 2s, thinking that the Warren Commission narrative has holes. Or that conspiracy theories are backwards looking, and politics is about the now and the future.
“Matt Cholko
October 22, 2014 at 6:12 pm
Jacobs (Glenn) doesn’t have any real star power.”
I’d say that he’s got at least as much, and probably more, star power than Gary Johnson. Glenn Jacobs has also got more charisma than Gary Johnson, and he is better on libertarian philosophy and issues than Gary Johnson is.
“As a not-quite-top-tier WWE star, I’d imagine that he has some money, but probably not enough to make a difference in a POTUS campaign.”
Glenn Jacobs is a millionaire. According to Celebrity Net Worth, he is worth $7 million.
http://www.celebritynetworth.com/view/en/glen_jacobs/
“That absolutely DOES NOT mean that he shouldn’t run for POTUS. I’m just saying, he’s not really a big name, or a guy with big bucks.”
This is obviously not enough money to make much of a difference in a Presidential race (although I bet he’s worth a lot more than Wayne Allyn Root, and I remember a lot of Root supporters acting like Root’s money would have a big impact in the Presidential race), but being worth $7 million is more than enough to be classified as being rich.
I think that Glenn Jacobs would make a great candidate for office due to the fact that he’s solid on philosophy and issues, he’s a persuasive communicator, plus he has fame and charisma.
If Glenn Jacobs announced that he were running for President, or Senate, or US House, or Governor, or State Legislature, or Sheriff, or anything else, I would enthusiastically make a donation to his campaign.
Sean Scallon said: ” In fact, bringin him aboard would be a negative for the LP, as it would drag it back to fringe and charges of ‘extremism’ and ‘conspiracy theory’ would once again be head along with and on top of ‘9-11 Truth!'”
I totally disagree here. There have been numerous surveys that indicate that a large percentage of Americans do not believe the official government stories about 9/11, the JFK assassination, etc… Many Americans know that government officials routinely lie and engage in conspiracies. The type of people who are offended by questioning official government stories about 9/11, the JFK assassination, etc…, are also the type of people who are the least likely to vote for minor party or independent candidates no matter what they do, as in these people are mainstream Democrats and mainstream Republicans. My experience in discussing politics with I don’t even know how many thousands of people is that those who don’t buy into everything the government says are the most likely to support minor party or independent candidates.
^Exactly.
Sean Scallon said: “Which basically means he’s not running.I severely doubt there is a Perot-like grassroots movement waiting to go to work for Jesse Ventura all next year and into 2016.”
Ross Perot did not get on the ballot because of a grass roots movement. Ross Perot got on the ballot in all 50 states, plus DC, in 1992 and in 1996 because he shelled big money out of his own pocket to hire paid petition signature gatherers. He may have received some additional donations from supporters to help cover this cost, but most of the money came out of his pocket. He may have had supporters who got a small handful of volunteer signatures, but the majority of the signatures necessary to get Ross Perot on the ballot came from paid signature gatherers.
Yep!
“Probably only from the standpoint of bilking libertarians for money.”
Agreed, which is why Libertarians should stay far, far away from him.
“That all depends. He has to see a grassroots movement from the citizens of this country to get him ballot access in all 50 state.”
Which basically means he’s not running.I severely doubt there is a Perot-like grassroots movement waiting to go to work for Jesse Ventura all next year and into 2016. In fact, some of the very people who would have helped in this endeavour are so angry at him right now after Kyle-defamation trial they will never have anything to do with him again. This is not the Jesse Ventura of 1998 we’re talking about here.
Of course, this in not the Libertarian Party of 1998 we’re talking about either. Someone had asked Ventura back in 1999 why he wasn’t a Libertarian and he stated “Well, I thought I was but then I read their platform. They’re a bunch of anarchists.” Back then the Reform Party was thought to be the best, more viable vehicle for those of a libertarian-persusaion who didn’t want to hook up with the LP at that time. Fast forward 16 years later and that’s not true anymore. Ventura could easily be a Libertarian and not feel gulity about it. But he’s long since past his political sell-by date and really isn’t worth worrying about. In fact, bringin him aboard would be a negative for the LP, as it would drag it back to fringe and charges of “extremism” and “conspiracy theory” would once again be head along with and on top of “9-11 Truth!” Do LPers really want to go back there when so many of their candidates are doing well in the current polls by LP and third party standards? I think not.
As for Ventura, I’m with Andy that it is (well past) time for him to really throw his has in the ring, or STFU. Given where we are in the election cycle, I’m willing to give him about 6 more months to make a real commitment to running, before I declare him a douchebag.
Unfortunately, I predict that we’ll see a post similar to this on IPR a year from now.
Jacobs (Glenn) doesn’t have any real star power. As a not-quite-top-tier WWE star, I’d imagine that he has some money, but probably not enough to make a difference in a POTUS campaign.
That absolutely DOES NOT mean that he shouldn’t run for POTUS. I’m just saying, he’s not really a big name, or a guy with big bucks.
How about Jesse Ventura run for President on a ticket with “Kane,” also known as Glenn Jacobs, for Vice President? Heck, how about Glenn Jacobs for President in 2016?
Glenn Jacobs at LPAC 2014
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yAhlDgrvmlY
I know Stone had a falling out with Gary Johnson’s campaign because they would not make him campaign manager or pay him a lot of money, and proceeded to anonymously shovel a bunch of exaggerated dirt about the campaign’s management close to election time (much as he did to Warren Redlich), but this is ridiculous. Gary was ten years old when president John F. Kennedy was assassinated and I think it is fairly obvious to say that Gary wasn’t behind it. 😛
Stone is now an “alternative historian” plugging his books on Nixon and how Johnson was behind the killing of JFK.
http://stonezone.com/
“Mike Kane
October 21, 2014 at 2:20 pm
lol Ventura/Stone for President with Ron Nielson running the campaign. That would mean 5 times the amount of garbage that the Johnson campaign had.”
I agree. Stone would be a horrible choice as a VP nominee for Ventura. I would not even consider him if I was Jesse Ventura. I’d like to see him run on a ticket with Alex Jones.
“Jill Pyeatt Post author
October 21, 2014 at 3:01 pm
So, is Roger Stone really ‘with the libertarians now’?”
Probably only from the standpoint of bilking libertarians for money.
Someone who runs for president as an independent can’t get primary season matching funds. Ralph Nader understood this, so in both 2004 and 2008 he did get primary season matching funds because in addition to running as an independent, he also sought the nomination of several parties. One must seek the nomination of a party in order to get primary season matching funds. Ventura certainly depended on public funding when he was elected in 1998. I have tried to communicate with him about the need to seek the nomination of a party, but he has never responded to me. Also in nine states it is easier to get on the ballot as a minor party presidential nominee (even if one has to create the party oneself) than as an independent: Arizona, California, Delaware, Florida hugely, Hawaii, Maryland hugely, Mississippi, New Mexico hugely, Texas hugely. Nader understood this.
I find Jesse Ventura to be an interesting political character but at this point he is, IMO, the alt-politics version of Newt Gingrich. Flirting incessantly with the idea of running but never actually doing so.
So, is Roger Stone really “with the libertarians now”?
lol Ventura/Stone for President with Ron Nielson running the campaign. That would mean 5 times the amount of garbage that the Johnson campaign had.
Jesse Ventura should listen to Roger Stone. Also, he should smarten up on philosophy, and at least get to the level of Doug Stanhope. He regularly makes idiotic, alarmingly unphilosophical statements about supporting totalitarian aspects of government, such as socialized medicine.
I recommend remedial reading of Harry Browne’s books to him.
Also, his idiotic demands that the people put him on the ballot without a clear statement from him that he is running are just that: idiotic. There is only one way in this universe that Jesse Ventura can enable the grassroots to put him on the ballot in all 50 States:
Raise $20,000,000 to do it. That’s what it costs to put someone on the ballot during overlapping ballot access deadlines.
Even worse: his idiotic comments that “the people get him into the presidential debates.” The presidential debate commission exists to protect the incumbent government. If Ventura declared now, campaigned hard, and raised a ton of money, he could probably get into the debates, because he has a clue about how to campaign, and how to be controversial enough to force the media to cover him. He gets that much. …But make no mistake about it, the presidential debate commission would be dragged screaming and kicking toward putting him in the debates, and might not do it if he polled at 20%. The GOP debates, for example, repeatedly raised the bar on the percentage required to include Gary Johnson in the debates.
I like Ventura, but I don’t like his repeated idiotic comments. He’s just wasting time. He should either realize that a challenger to fascism has to start waaaaay early and go “all in,” or he should shut up, and stop making “president” noises.
Our government is now a bloated totalitarian sociopath that is fat and comfortable from lack of being challenged by anyone. If Ventura ran, the real government might actually sit up and take notice. His description in his book about being killed is probably accurate, even though it would mean that rank-in-file conformists would start carrying rifles and killing cops, since it would clearly indicate that the existing system is totally illegitimate, and has been, since the 1963 Coup d’Etat.
Ventura / Stone 2016! …Make it happen. Declare now as a Libertarian, perhaps hire Trippi and/or Nielsen as your campaign consultants, and stop fucking around.
Hire Andy Jacobs to manage your ballot access in all 50 States. He’s nuts, but he knows how ballot access is done, and he’s honest to the point of George Washington, to where it’s actually hurt his career. You don’t find a lot of people like that. Also, Andy is a 9-11 truth advocate, so he won’t misrepresent Ventura’s views to the public, or water them down. In some states, there are over 500,000 voter interactions necessary for presidential ballot access, so if every signer gets Ventura literature, that’s a major jump-start to his campaign. (Without hiring a dedicated libertarian like Andy, nobody will get any literature at all, no matter the promises of the LNC. The LNC is populated with idiots who defer to Redpath, or whoever the Feds replace him with, once the heat is finally turned up.)
I hope Ventura reads this. If he listens to this advice, he can make a difference. He should stop thinking about the Libertarian Party as anything other than
1) A vehicle to allow common citizens to run for office.
and, ….maybe…
2) A litmus test for “less government” views, when all other parties lack such a “test,” and therefore run the same kinds of sociopaths that the major parties run. The job of “politician” is a dream job for people who lack mirror neurons. Sociopaths comprise 2-4% of society according to Jim Kouri, an FBI profiler and psychologist, and several other sources. Even at 2% they would be numerous enough to fill congress with people who were highly incentivized to win office, and totally not incentivized to “represent” anyone but themselves. By expanding the size and power of all government programs, sociopaths display (coercive)”malevolent emergence” which is the opposite of the (voluntary) benevolent emergence displayed by the (slightly free)markets.
If Jesse encouraged people who wanted less government to run for their State Legislatures as libertarians, he could also accomplish something major, instead of merely trying and failing to get elected. Thomas Jefferson favored this kind of “local strategy” for maintaining freedom.
…I really wish Jesse would read more. He should start with Clay Conrad’s “Jury Nullification: The Evolution of a Doctrine” and Vin Suprynowicz’s “Send in the Waco Killers.”
Really, he doesn’t even need to get himself killed running for president. He should join the Libertarian Party, and form a caucus to elect people to their state legislatures as Libertarians. He should rout out anyone in the LP who stands in the way of allowing anyone to run for State Legislature on the LP ticket (Bill Redpath, Sean Haugh, etc.).
In any event, he should either retire from “official, electoral” politics and begin supporting the building of synthetic brains, or he should declare TODAY, and begin running a serious campaign.
Ventura should listen to Roger Stone. Then again, maybe he shouldn’t because he’s alarmingly philosophically inconsistent. He sometimes has mentioned that he’s open to the idea of socialized medicine, which is frightening. Any philosophical weakness is instantly exploited once a person is elected, and surrounded with the power-players, and other various political sociopaths.
OK, so at least Ventura has some balls, even if he doesn’t have the intellect that a Doug Stanhope possesses. Nonetheless, his insistence that the people organize their way around the hellish ballot access laws PRIOR to any commitment from him is as delusional as it gets. Still worse, is his insistence that the people get him into the presidential debates: WAKE UP, YA FUCKIN’ DUMMY! THE PEOPLE DON’T GET TO DECIDE WHO DEBATES! The entire presidential debate commission exists to protect the incumbent government: were a solid candidate to come forward and, with massive public support, force them to open the debate to him, it would be kicking and screaming all the way.
I like Jesse Ventura, but he’s got to smarten up, and realize that the government is a bloated totalitarian sociopath that has never been seriously challenged: it is not “by the people, for the people.” The one sxception is the illiterate, dumbed-down government-school-miseducated public, which comprises “the Jury.”
Name recognition isn’t always a good thing. Celebrity comes at a price, Ventura created an image that brought him to fame, and helped him get elected as governor–but that image also leaves many with a bad aftertaste.
I don’t support him as a Libertarian candidate because I suspect the negative aspects of association with his image will last much longer than the positive aspects his fame will bring.
“Libertarians–that’s the Jesse the body Ventura party isn’t it?” “you guys are the conspiracy theorists, right?”
Not really conversations I’m excited about having.
I could get easily back a famous person, but not someone with that strong of an over-the-top-image.
“Jeff asks Jesse Ventura’s son Tyrel Ventura about the possibility of his dad running for President in 2016. The younger Ventura explains, “That all depends. He has to see a grassroots movement from the citizens of this country to get him ballot access in all 50 states. And then be willing to march on Washington with him if they don’t allow him to debate. But he has to see the citizenry go through the necessary steps to get him on the ballot.”
Jesse Ventura could get on the ballot in all 50 states plus DC, but in order to do that he’s going to have to do something that he does not like doing, and that is raising money. Money is the lifeblood of politics, so he’d need money to not only get on the ballot, but also to run his campaign once he made the ballot. Jesse Ventura has the fame and charisma necessary to raise a lot of money. He, or somebody else, would have to organize an effort to complete ballot access petition drives in all 50 states plus DC. This would be a lot of work, but it is doable, but it would only happen with money and an organized effort behind it.
“paulie
October 21, 2014 at 12:30 am
I wouldn’t presume he agrees with libertarian philosophy. He pays lip service to a lot of it, but then he did the same even before he was governor, claiming he scored 100/100, but that was not even close to how he governed.”
I think that Jesse Ventura does agree with libertarians on a lot of issues, and I think that he has become more libertarian since his time as Governor, however, he is not a hardcore libertarian. For instance, he came out in favor of increasing the minimum wage.
Jesse Ventura has been hovering around the libertarian quadrant for a while, but he just seems to be missing a few pieces of the puzzle. I wonder if he took some classes at the Mises Institute if this would make the difference. Maybe he should have a long conversation about political philosophy with fellow pro wrestler Glenn Jacobs (aka-“Kane”).
Even with Jesse Ventura’s flaws (from a libertarian perspective), he’d still make the Presidential race a lot more interesting, and he’d certainly be better than whatever turds the Democrips and the Rebloodlicans squeeze out as candidates for 2016.
Also, it is not as though the Libertarian Party has always nominated purist candidates, or even candidates who were close to being purists. Just look at the 2008 Barr / Root ticket. The 2012 Johnson / Gray ticket were not hardcore libertarian either.
Jesse Ventura needs to shit or get off the can when it comes to running for President, as in either run, or stop talking about running.
“The Body” does have some libertarian tendencies and beliefs but, at the end of the day, he’s no more libertarian than Rand Paul. If Jesse came knocking in Orlando as opposition to Gov. Johnson, I’d vote Johnson (and as I say this as someone who hopes Johnson is not our nominee again). I do wish he’d make an independent run but he needs to do some of the work himself. He goes on enough book tours to collect signatures and money while on the road to help build momentum but he always wants to pass the buck onto others.
I wouldn’t presume he agrees with libertarian philosophy. He pays lip service to a lot of it, but then he did the same even before he was governor, claiming he scored 100/100, but that was not even close to how he governed.
A more recent example than the ones you cite is Ralph Nader, who got on most of the state ballots as an independent in 2004 and 2008 after running as a Green (but never actually joining the Greens) in 1996 and 2000.
I’m also far from convinced Ventura will run at all, with or without a party. This is the same song and dance he has given many times. He wants to be put on all state ballots before he decides, which is literally impossible – quite a few states will require him to sign a declaration of interest before they place him on the ballot. They’ll also need a running mate. And he wants guaranteed debate access before he decides, which also couldn’t happen. He’s played this same game in each of the last several presidential elections.
It’s possible he could change his mind and go LP at the last minute. If that happens, maybe he could waltz in to the convention and take it away from Johnson and/or whoever else is running at the last minute, but I sure wouldn’t count on it, and I don’t think Roger Stone is in a position to deliver the nomination if that was what he was implying. Nor is there any way to predict who else may run for it between now and then or who else may show up to the convention at the last minute.
Gov. Ventura should consider seeking the Libertarian line {assuming he agrees with the Libertarian philosophy} because running for president as a total independent without any party behind you is a fool’s errand. When Eugene McCarthy tried to run without a party he spent most of his efforts in and out of court trying to get on the ballot in all 50 states. Eventually he got on 30 but with 15 different running mates.
When John Anderson ran he had first run in several Republican primaries as a “top-tier candidate” and money and supporters left over from his primary campaign.
When Ross Perot ran he had access to his own personal fortune and friends with deep pockets, too. But running without a party convinced him to start the Reform Party.