Road Rage 2020: Volume 9 - Madness of American Politics

By Samir Shukla

Convention Junction. What's Your Function?
The organizers for both Democratic National Convention and the Republican National Convention are gearing up for their upcoming extravaganzas. The matter of a little pandemic is being seen by both parties in different lights. Democrats are thinking they may have to do a smaller convention or possibly even a virtual one. The Republicans are going full steam ahead to hold a convention with thousands of participants.
Both conventions are now slated for August, DNC in Milwaukee and RNC in my hometown Charlotte. I will be covering both, either virtually or in person. Let's see what pans out. More on this as it develops.

Dear Libertarians

Stop it. Please. Stop fielding candidates for president. You are not going to win the office anytime soon. Maybe forget the Senate as well. Put all your marbles, money, and political infrastructure into the House of Representatives. Create a block of Libertarian representatives and then forge a power voice. Also, fine tune your message. It is overtly individualistic and just sounds kooky to the average voter. It simply doesn't resonate with lots of people. Your message of fiscal and military spending responsibility and progressive social agenda fits with most Americans' thinking. But you are lousy in propagating this message. If there is ever going to be a major third party, you can be it, but not the way you currently do things.

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So, sit down at your next meetings and organizing events, national convention and heed my advice. Three words you should concentrate on to help make the party a national power. House of Representatives. Of course, make runs for mayors or city councils and state legislatures around the country, but the real prize for you is the House. This year there are numerous people running for the Libertarian Party's nomination for president. Most are oddballs and total unknowns who won't get anywhere. A well-known candidate, former Republican Justin Amash, threw his hat into the ring for the Libertarian Party nomination for president and quickly realized it wasn't worth the effort. He is a former congressman who voted to impeach Donald trump and is a vocal critic. He may have unhinged both political parties when he announced interest, but let's face it, he wouldn't have made much of a dent.

The Libertarian National Convention will take place from July 8 - 12 in Orlando. They have picked their President and VP candidates during their virtual convention in May. It's will be an exercise in futility. All that money and effort can be spent on nurturing Libertarian candidates running for the House.
Notable Upcoming Dates:
July 8 - 12: Libertarian National Convention, Orlando
August 17-20: DNC convention, Milwaukee
August 24-27: RNC Convention, Charlotte
September 29: First presidential debate, Notre Dame, IN. (University of Notre Dame)
October 7: Vice presidential debate, Salt Lake City, UT (University of Utah)
October 15: Second presidential debate, Ann Arbor, MI (University of Michigan)
October 22: Third presidential debate, Nashville, TN (Belmont University)

Road Rage 2020 are a series of essays covering the election that I will write through Nov 2020.