I’ve been clear since Donald Trump won the Republican nomination that I could not vote for him with a clear conscience. He lacks character, he is dishonest, he has a dangerous temperament, and is basically unfit to be President of the United States. I also could not cast a vote for Hillary Clinton as she is a statist, radically pro-abortion, anti-religious liberty, dishonest and someone who can’t be trusted with a security clearance to name just a few reasons. She is supremely disqualified for office herself. I’ve written extensively about these two.
So looking at some of the third party/independent candidates, and because some will ask why I ruled certain choices out, I want to share some reasons why.
Gary Johnson, the Libertarian candidate, lost a chance to have my vote with his position on abortion and religious liberty. I also believe he is out of his depth on foreign policy. I’ve written about what I saw was his four fatal flaws. I will say that I believe he is far more qualified for office than either Trump or Clinton, but that’s a pretty low bar this year.
I also looked at the Constitution Party nominee Darrell Castle. While he and I are probably closely aligned on a lot of issues, I don’t believe he has the type of experience I am looking for. I’m not big fans of personal injury attorneys, but what I could not get past was his willingness to adopt conspiracy theories. He is a birther. He believes German Chancellor Angela Merkel is a descendant of Adolf Hitler and that she hates the German people (I’m sure that would be just swell for foreign relations). He believes the U.S. is conditioning soldiers to shed American blood. He then appears to be a 9/11 truther. This is just what I’ve been able to find. No thank you.
I have decided that I will be voting for Evan McMullin on Tuesday.
McMullin got into the race late, but he brings with him an interesting resume. He has served his country as a counter-terrorism operative with the Central Intelligence Agency. He earned an MBA and was an investment banker after leaving the CIA. After that he was a senior advisor for the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and previous to announcing his candidacy he was the chief policy director for the House Republican Conference.
I am not voting for him because I think he is a perfect candidate, he is not. There are no perfect candidates in this race. I am not voting for him because I necessarily think he will win. He is a long shot, but if the election is close and he wins the state of Utah which is not outside the realm of possibility he could be disruptive to both Trump and Clinton should the decision land with the House of Representatives.
My vote in Iowa is not going to help him accomplish that particular goal however, but he did work to make the ballot in my state and he has earned my vote.
I am sending a message of protest. I am done voting for “the lesser of two evils.” I have a line that I will not cross. I am not voting out of fear, but out of principle.
Here are my top 10 reasons for supporting Evan McMullin.
- He is a decent man, a man of character.
- He is pro-life.
- He has a record of service to others.
- He understands foreign policy and threats to our national security.
- He believes in smaller, limited government.
- He believes in the separation of powers and against an imperial Presidency.
- He wants to protect religious liberty for all at home, and promote it abroad.
- He wants to return power taken by the federal government and return it to the states.
- He plans to appoint judges that will uphold the Constitution as originally written and understood.
- He wants to get government out of the way so the private sector can create jobs.
I could also add that he is the sane choice, but this isn’t an exhaustive list by any means. If you are undecided and you want a different choice to what the major parties are offering I encourage you to give him a look.
Also, I would also encourage you to read Adam Graham’s endorsement of McMullin. My daughter Kelvey also endorsed him last month.