Liberty For All

by Peter Orvetti

Wayne Allyn Root - or W.A.R., as he likes to call himself - is off to an early start in his second run for the Libertarian presidential nomination.  The hyperactive entrepreneur has just published “The Conscience of a Libertarian,” a 368-page book about his policy prescriptions and Libertarian conversion.

The subtitle - “Empowering the Citizen Revolution with God, Guns, Gambling, and Tax Cuts” - gives readers a fair idea where the Las Vegas businessman and television personality is coming from.  As befits a writer whose previous works include “Millionaire Republican,” Root definitely comes to the libertarian movement from the right.  The title, of course, alludes to Barry Goldwater’s 1960 book “The Conscience of a Conservative,” and Root mentions his “heroes” Goldwater and Ronald Reagan many times throughout his text.

This is not a subtle book, and it is not a philosophical one.  While 1984 Libertarian presidential nominee David Bergland’s “Libertarianism In One Lesson” offers a brief, somewhat theoretical introduction to libertarian concepts, and “Healing Our World” by Root’s 2008 nomination rival Mary Ruwart appeals to those coming to libertarianism from left or pacifist backgrounds, Root’s book contains a lot of conservative red meat of the type heard daily on Fox News.

This is not necessarily a bad thing.  The 2010 and 2012 elections will center around economic issues, particular skyrocketing spending and an ever-deepening deficit.  Root shies away from dealing with social issues in detail, preferring to aim his fire at bloated bureaucracy.  Root says he and his former classmate Barack Obama took very different directions after graduating from Columbia University.  Obama, Root says, went from law student to professor to attorney to community activist to politician.  In contrast, Root has created his own businesses, directly created jobs, and made new wealth.

But Root too is now a politician, and this is a politician’s book.  Root may be the most media-savvy figure ever to seek the Libertarian Party presidential nomination.  He made dozens of appearances on Fox News, MSNBC, CNBC, and other stations while seeking the 2008 nomination, and displayed a talent for distilling libertarian ideas into the sort of short, snappy lines needed for success in that arena.  Root was the favorite for the nomination until the late entry of Bob Barr and Ruwart, and given Root’s media chops, it is possible he would have outperformed Barr’s 524,000 votes if he had been the nominee.  (Root became Barr’s running mate, but the Barr campaign made little use of Root.)

While Root does not spend much time on personal and social issues, his lifestyle is a libertarian one.  He homeschools his children — one of whom placed his name into nomination at the 2008 Libertarian National Convention in a widely praised speech — and has made himself rich in the gaming industry.  He blasts his old party, writing, “When it comes to issues like abortion, gay rights, stem cell funding, right to die (think Terri Schiavo), online poker, medical marijuana, and censorship of television, the GOP is actually in favor of Big Brother moving into our bedrooms, taking over our televisions and computers, and taking control of our lives.”

Since this book is as much about promoting Root as it is about promoting libertarianism, much of it is personal.  Root writes about himself on almost every page, and even quotes himself within his own text.  He calls for — in all capital letters — a “ROOT REVOLUTION.”  This self-promotion can get a bit irritating after a while, but Root’s high-spiritedness can also be infectious as he makes his pitch to people like himself.  These are not just small business owners, homeschoolers, and members of the gambling community, but also personal health and holistic living advocates, disappointed Republicans, and the religious.

Root is an engaging and energetic character, better suited to the screen than the page.  In his television appearances, his upbeat demeanor and bubbling good nature take some of the edge off his slams against big government, while in print these can come off as harsh and overblown.  But it is on the air — on his new radio show and in his continued cable news channel appearances — that Root will promote his message, and himself, between now and 2012.  Root has a characteristically ambitious long-term plan: win two to five million votes as the Libertarian presidential nominee in three years, draw “Ross Perot-like numbers” in 2016, and “become your first Libertarian president” by winning in 2020.  This book, it would seem, is just the start.

Peter Orvetti was an early political blogger in the United States, running his Orvetti.com political news report from 1997 through 2002. He is a past editorial writer for the Cato Institute, served as Deputy Director of Communications for the Libertarian Party in the lead-up to the 2000 party convention, and has published commentaries in several major newspapers. Contact Mr. Orvetti at peterjorvetti@gmail.com.