aTypical Joe: a gay New Yorker living in the rural South

Thursday, April 03, 2008

On Bob Barr’s libertarian credentials

Bob Barr’s all over the news today, planning a presidential bid. The question seems to be will he run as an Independent or a Libertarian and will it hurt McCain more than the Democrat.

Gays in Georgia remember Barr with some disdain. Chris Crain:

When Bob Barr was a Republican congressman from Georgia, he authored and was the chief sponsor of the Defense of Marriage Act, which blocks any federal recognition of gay couples married by the states, as well as allowing each state to refuse to recognizes marriage licenses issued to gay couples by other states.

Barr has always been a walking contradiction, defending the institution of marriage from gays even as he divorced his first two wives and is now on his third; he is also an ardent foe of abortion rights even though he supported a decision by his wife at the time to terminate a pregnancy. There are individual rights Barr does care about—he’s a longtime board member of the National Rifle Association.