Politics

Mike Riggs on Gary Johnson's Mission to Build a Libertarian-Leaning Coalition

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Compared to fellow former Republican Bob Barr, who was tied for the presidential nomination through five rounds of ballots at the 2008 national convention, getting the backing of the Libertarian Party is going to be a cakewalk for Gary Johnson. What about the rest of America? Johnson is hoping to poll high enough to appear with President Barack Obama and the GOP nominee in a televised debate, and pull 5 percent in the general election. But the former two-term governor of New Mexico, writes Mike Riggs, is having a hard time coralling people who lean libertarian, but aren't quite.