Libertarian Party in 2015 State of the Union address
On Drugs:
De-fund war on drugs, and end violent drug cartels
Mr. President, so many of your supporters have begged you to defund and end the War on Drugs, but you have refused their pleas. Drug prohibition separates families, fosters violence, and destroys communities.
You can end the war on drugs today, by doing what so many Libertarian gubernatorial and presidential candidates have pledged to do: pardon all nonviolent drug offenders.
Libertarian candidates have pledged to completely end the war on drugs, and thereby eliminate the black market profits that fund violent cartels.
Ending the Drug War will make our streets safer, and people will no longer have to fear incarceration if they seek help overcoming an addiction.
Source: 2015 State of the Union Libertarian Party response
Jan 20, 2015
On Education:
Make college affordable by ending subsidies and mandates
[President Obama in his State of the Union speech] proposes pouring more taxpayer dollars into another federal education program, this time for community colleges. But federal intervention has driven up the price of higher education.
What if we could make college affordable right now by simply getting government out of higher ed? Without subsidies and costly mandates, competition will force colleges to decrease their tuition or go out of business.
Massive student debt would be a thing of the past.
Mr. President, we can have world-class education. The first step is defunding and eliminating the federal Department of Education, abolishing Common Core, and allowing parents to take full
control over their children's education. Free-market competition will raise educational standards, lower costs, and prepare students to compete in a global economy.
Source: 2015 State of the Union Libertarian Party response
Jan 20, 2015
On Education:
Cut back Common Core and the Department of Education
The Libertarian Party suggests not just stopping Obama's proposed new programs, but rolling back old ones that most Americans don't consider might be hurting more than helping. Party vice-chair Arvin Vohra suggests, for example, that rather than
further subsidizing community colleges, Obama could do more for both educational affordability and quality by cutting back existing federal interventions and contributions to education, all the way down to Common Core and the Department of Education
Source: Reason Mag.: Libertarian response to 2015 State of the Union
Jan 20, 2015
On Foreign Policy:
End foreign military operations; shut down foreign bases
[Current policy] damages lives through misuse and overuse of the military. Libertarian candidates have pledged to sponsor legislation to end all foreign military operations, shut down needless foreign bases, cut military spending by at least 60%, and
bring our troops home.Even after those spending cuts, we will still outspend both Russia and China combined. We will also be safer, because our military will be focused on defense. We will stop creating enemies through unwarranted military intrusions.
Source: 2015 State of the Union Libertarian Party response
Jan 20, 2015
On Health Care:
Repeal ObamaCare and don't replace it with RomneyCare
Republicans have talked about repealing and replacing Obamacare. With what? Romneycare? That will continue to damage businesses and make health care worse.When Republicans controlled the House, they had the chance to defund Obamacare. They refused.
Libertarian candidates have pledged to completely repeal Obamacare along with the many laws that stand in the way of low-cost, high-quality health care.
Providers will compete for customers by lowering costs and increasing quality.
To help people in need, Libertarian candidates will make charitable hospitals legal. Doctors should not have to leave our borders to be able to offer free care.
Source: 2015 State of the Union Libertarian Party response
Jan 20, 2015
On Homeland Security:
Intelligently rethink overall military spending
Libertarian Party vice-chair Arvin Vohra calls Obama out on ignoring here the expensive and destructive Drug War, and his hypocrisy on Internet informational privacy while running, and defending, a universal surveillance state, and his refusal to
intelligently rethink overall military spending and postures while talking up a supposedly more intelligent form of constant foreign military intervention.
Source: Reason Mag.: Libertarian response to 2015 State of the Union
Jan 20, 2015
On Jobs:
Eliminate the minimum wage in every state
Mr. President, your attempts to raise the minimum wage will destroy one of the most important forms of education in this country. Many young people develop responsibility and marketable skills in entry-level, minimum-wage jobs.
Those skills make workers more attractive to future employers. The Republican answer, to leave the issue to the states, is a cop-out.
All minimum wages kill jobs and hurt the poor. Libertarian candidates have pledged to sponsor legislation to eliminate the minimum wage in every state.
That makes it easier for young people to gain experience, for the poorest workers to gain a foothold in the job market, and for small businesses to grow.
Source: 2015 State of the Union Libertarian Party response
Jan 20, 2015
On Jobs:
Eliminate minimum wage so entry level jobs available to all
The Libertarian Party suggests not just stopping Obama's proposed new programs, but rolling back old ones that most Americans don't consider might be hurting more than helping. [Such as]: Don't raise the minimum wage to help people really
better themselves and get ahead; eliminate it so entry level jobs are available to all, not just those already valuable enough to be worth the enhanced minimum wage.
Source: Reason Mag.: Libertarian response to 2015 State of the Union
Jan 20, 2015
On Technology:
Repeal the PATRIOT Act and end the surveillance state
Mr. President, over the last weeks you have repeatedly argued that Americans should be able to go online without risking their privacy. On that, we completely agree.
Americans should be able to use their computers and phones without fear of anyone listening in or recording their communications through mass surveillance.
But your words, Mr. President, don't match your actions. You have funded and enabled the surveillance state. To protect privacy,
Libertarian candidates have pledged to defund the NSA's mass surveillance program, repeal the Patriot Act, and massively downsize and consolidate redundant spy agencies.
Source: 2015 State of the Union Libertarian Party response
Jan 20, 2015
Page last updated: Feb 24, 2019