Rep. Justin Amash announced on April 28 that it was an exploratory committee to seek the introduction of the Libertarian Party presidential nomination. He had time, leaving the rumors about a possible presidential run around Amash last year, the Republican Party and became an independent member of Congress (a Amash spokesman says now officially a libertarian congressman is). Although he was critical of Trump and Republican parties, Amash says his main argument is broader: He believes that the country is stuck in what has always been a “death spiral partisan” in which representative government is broken called. Amash, who says he will not seek re-election to its current location House, spoke with TIME via Skype from his home in Michigan on May 3, where he discussed the status of the current Republican Party, as he believes that at a practical level the playing field of a campaign, and why he thinks he has a way for the appointment. The following is slightly modified, abbreviated transcript of the interview. As a presidential candidate, it would be the central idea of the campaign? The basic idea is freedom and representative government. And what we have now in Washington, is a very broken system. What happens too often at this time, some congressional leaders negotiate with the White House, and decide everything for everyone. And this leads to a lot of frustration and a lot of partisanship, because if Congress does not recommend the present policy if you have the majority of members of Congress have left the process, then they begin to discuss personalities. Why do you run your toes dipping feet in a search committee, rather than just outright? I’m new to the Libertarian Party, and am looking for the nomination of the Libertarian Party. I want to be respectful of all the delegates, I want to be respectful of the people who have been part of this party for a long time. It began as a search committee, so you can try to win the nomination, and if they are able to continue to get along and receive appointment, then you can talk about changing it to a full committee. You have when it comes to deciding on a deadline if it actually performs against exploratory? I do not remember a specific time in mind. I think as this continues, we will have a better idea of where we are with the delegates. And maybe there is a point where I feel more at ease the concrete to move now and say, yes, I am in 100%, I’m going all the way. But now I want to make respectful work of the delegates and to earn their trust. And I will continue to work to do so in the coming weeks. Why now, when it’s so late in the election cycle, and in the midst of a pandemic? Well for one thing, I think it’s important to think about the fact that electoral cycles were longer still. They start early in the year before the election, and we do not need so many campaigns for the presidency to go, otherwise these things is just non-stop all day, and people really tired of it. But in fact, earlier this year, in February, I started very careful watching, and wanted to confirm that I would be a candidate, and I would make a decision’ve done before, but then we had the pandemic crown come, and I had to make the decision, the right decision, I think, to delay the final verdict, if I’m not going to jump in or because I want to be able to represent my constituents during this time, I wanted to ensure that I am in Top-that the Congress and I wanted to re-evaluate how a pandemic situation in which we are all stuck at home, would affect the campaign. ‘Still possible for things that you want to talk in the third candidate, promote? E ‘can do, and how they will do it by my message there. And if I do, I am confident that people who see among the three candidates that we as a Libertarian Party candidate currently running, or search for the Libertarian Party nomination, is the one who most convincing and qualified of the three candidates. It does help your presence in the race and injured two candidates? I think that hurts both candidates. The goal is to win, so they obviously take from both candidates want votes. There is a large pool of voters who are not represented by one of the parties, and a lot of times, just stay home, or settle for a party, but he would be happy for someone else to vote if they believe was another candidate that was convincing. Have you thought about whether you want to vote for Biden or Trump? I would not vote for Biden or Trump. Getting rid of Donald Trump does not solve problems, why Donald Trump is just a symptom of the problems. there are still problems with Joe Biden at the White House. Is there anything you could do your friends in the Republican Party itself, to redeem the eyes now? I do not think there’s any way to pull back from where they are. The culture of Donald Trump, which was dominant in the Republican Party, will not soon be gone. It ‘s probably here for at least a decade. It is a very different tone; it is a very different kind. There is a lot of attention on the principles of addition, there is a focus on personality. What makes you think that there is a viable option for you? If you think about it if the Republicans are firmly behind Trump, yes, I am firmly behind Trump, because they see no alternative. And they see the alternative now as Joe Biden, and that is not a viable alternative for the majority of Republicans. So there is not a way for a third candidate to get the votes of Republicans. Michigan has the protest in the news recently against the Crown governor’s policy. Can I ask what you are made of them? I protested supportive people. I support their right to protest. I think people are very excited about a lot of cross Michigan. They condemn and denounce things like with Nazi flags and Nazi symbols in protests. Or enter the Capitol taking up arms in a way that would intimidate most people. What it is not adhering to the protests, where people have the social distancing practices? It should not happen, where people do not keep away from each of at least 6 feet. I mean, we heard from doctors and epidemiologists and others. We must adhere to these guidelines. What was the decision not like to run for re-election? It ‘was one of the most difficult decisions of my life. I think it’s important to focus on one game at a time and this is the race I concentrated. Ultimately, I decided that although I can win re-election as an independent, I was not sure it would be the same kind of difference to our system does in a presidential campaign is running and that to win the campaign. If you win as an independent, some people might only write for a certain curiosity of the third district of Michigan and speak in this neighborhood as an independent victory, but there is no place to work differently. If you win the presidency as a libertarian, you have the chance to really get the system so excited that our constitutional process and our representatives can restore the government, and for me that’s the important thing. That is how to decide at home, and if you want to run for President in these circumstances? It is a different type of campaign, but it is one that can actually work in my favor. If we had a normal campaign, I do not, of course, not the name ID of going to hold mass rallies or any of these kinds of things, like the president could, or could perhaps Joe Biden. So we are at a point where we can compete with other candidates through videos and through technology, and have the advantage that, perhaps, to go as a young candidates there and get my message on social media and elsewhere.
Michigan Representative. Justin Amash to why he ran for president as a Libertarian and culture of the GOP
