America’s third way

For Americans who can’t stand Barack Obama but don’t want to vote for Mitt Romney, November’s presidential elections look bleak. There are other candidates, however, none more obvious than Gary Johnson, the former governor of New Mexico and the Libertarian party nominee. A greying triathlete who once climbed Mount Everest, he may not have a realistic chance of reaching the White House. But he is a politician to be reckoned with, especially since so many Americans are grumbling about the Washington status quo. 

As a Libertarian, Johnson favours essentially open immigration. He also wants lower taxes and less state spending than even the vast majority of Republicans. He tells me that the ‘fiscal blueprint’ set out by Paul Ryan, chairman of the House Budget Committee, which Republicans say will address the nation’s debt crisis and Democrats insist will eviscerate the social safety net, is ‘much ado about nothing’.