Silence is unsettling for Libertarian U.S. Senate candidate Jim Gray.
The Libertarian Orange County Superior Court judge acknowledges
that he is a minor-party candidate, but that doesn't mean his
candidacy lacks legitimacy, substantive arguments or even
significance in a democracy, he said. On the contrary, he says he is
a serious candidate, with pressing issues to bring to a statewide
and, ultimately, national stage.
That is why a Los Angeles Superior Court judge's decision Tuesday
that bars him from a U.S. Senate race debate, sponsored by the League
of Women Voters of California, troubles him.
Reformed drug laws, reducing government intrusion into people's
lives and a more international military force in Iraq are a few of
the issues he said he can bring to a debate with Democratic incumbent
U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer and Republican challenger Bill Jones.
But with the judge's ruling, Gray will be left on the fringe of
the debate, at best to appear with supporters outside of the Museum
of Tolerance in Los Angeles, where the debate Tuesday is scheduled to
be broadcasted on KNBC-TV Channel 4.
For Gray, a Newport Beach resident, the stakes are high.
Participating in a debate means more exposure and credibility, which
could open new streams of support. Gray commissioned a poll that
found 8% of respondents would support him for senator, with 68%
saying he should be part of the debate. The support wasn't good
enough for the League of Women Voters' 10%-of-likely-voters
threshold.
But in a larger sense, Gray sees the court's decision as a
siphoning off of democracy from alternative voices that are ready to
foster it.
The Pilot's Ryan Carter spoke with Gray about the decision and how
it affects his effort to become the next U.S. senator from
California.
Why is it important that you are in the debate? Or, put another
way, why do you and your party deserve to be represented in the
debate?
The debates present the opportunity to voters who are credible
candidates, and if I am not part of the debate, that will become a
self-fulfilling prophecy. We have ideas and issues that are of
extreme importance in today's world and virtually none of which are
represented by the Democrats and the Republicans. That includes
drug-law reform, amending three- strikes, reducing the size and cost
of federal government, and repealing the excesses of the Patriot Act.
There are only three serious candidates in this election that have
paid staff, fundraising and a headquarters. And, as a result, 68% of
