In July, when I first decided to support
Gary Johnson for President, he seemed likely to be the only semi-viable
third-party candidate on the ballot come November. More importantly, he was the
only notable candidate for President who had displayed the temperament and
character necessary to be an effective Commander in Chief, and his platform
actively pushed for several policies appealing to conservatives searching for
an alternative to Trump and Clinton—including fiscal responsibility and the
appointment of originalist justices to the Supreme Court.
When Evan McMullin announced his
candidacy as an independent conservative in August, I initially believed him to
be little more than a curiosity. He had joined the race late, with no name
recognition whatsoever, no infrastructure, and no outside support. I assumed
that, rather than a viable third option for conservatives disgusted with Trump,
he was yet another of the hundreds of people who run for president each
election cycle merely for the novelty and excitement.
The past two months have proven me
wrong.
Far from fading into the background of
an election season dominated by outsized personalities, McMullin has been
making campaign stops across the country, appearing on every TV station and
radio program that will have him, and aggressively reaching out to disaffected
Republicans and independents. His platform is not merely a “good enough”
offering of the sort embraced by the Libertarian ticket, which, while it has
much to offer conservatives, is troublingly liberal in areas such as
immigration, drug legalization, and the death penalty. McMullin’s platform, in
contrast, is unashamedly conservative—from embracing enforcement of immigration
law and a solid pro-life stand, to supporting fiscal responsibility, the rule
of law, and the preservation of the Constitution.
In short, a platform worthy of
wholehearted support by conservatives everywhere.
And if the prospect of supporting a
bold, conservative candidate for President in 2016 wasn’t incentive enough,
McMullin has also proven himself on the campaign trail to be a man of
integrity, character, and decency, who would honor the office once held by
Washington and Lincoln.
To be sure, McMullin has as little
chance of becoming President as does Gary Johnson, and trying to decide which
of the two to vote for may seem like a meaningless endeavor. But in 2016, the
possibility of voting for a presidential candidate with both strong moral
character and a realistic chance of victory is long gone. But voters should
never lose sight of their duty to choose the person they believe to be the
absolute best option, regardless of an ability to win. For President, in 2016,
Evan McMullin is that option.
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