While Jill Stein Rallies Sanders Supporters, Gary Johnson Keeps ‘Low Profile’
While the presumptive Green Party presidential nominee Jill Stein courts the Bernie Sanders supporters protesting at the DNC, Libertarian presidential nominee Gary Johnson says he has decided to take the opposite approach.
“I’m trying to keep a low profile here,” he told the FOX Business Network’s Charles Payne. “I’m trying to be respectful of the fact that Hillary is getting the nomination, but I really hope to be able to be on the presidential debate stage come September.”
And that just might happen for the former New Mexico governor, who according to the latest CNN/ORC poll gets 9% of the vote in a four-way matchup including Stein, who gets 3% (15% is needed to make it to the debate stage).
“I’ve got differences when it comes to Hillary Clinton. I really don’t believe that government has the answer. I think that lower taxes, less regulation… And then personal freedom and liberty… it’s important to all of us,” he said.
Johnson discussed his view on free trade.
“Free trade is the opposite of crony capitalism. Free trade needs to be promoted in a really big way. Diplomacy, that’s what we ought to be engaged in. I reject the fact that libertarians are isolationists – Donald Trump is [an] isolationist… we want free trade to prevail,” he said.
The former Republican-turned-Libertarian also explained how he would work to bring Republicans and Democrats together.
“Life is good, we have issues. I’m presenting the case that if you had two former Republican governors that served in heavily blue states elected President [and] Vice President … they’d actually be able to bring together Republicans and Democrats -- something that won’t happen if Clinton or Trump are elected,” he said.
He was also very optimistic about the future of America.
“I like what’s happening with Facebook today… I got on Oculus today, wow, that is the future… Have things ever been better in America? I don’t think they have. I think we communicate better with one another. I think kids are smarter than ever and [the] number one law enforcement tool is our smart phones,” he said.