Stupor Tuesday Commences! Plus, a Reason Sales Pitch!

John Kerry looks to put away challenger John Edwards today in a series of Democratic presidential primaries. Judging from recent crowds on the campaign trail, it shouldn't be a problem.

In Ohio, the Chicago Tribune reports Kerry drawing crowds in the thousands while Edwards pulled "a few dozen" in downtown Cleveland, putting him in Kucinich territory, literally and figuratively.

The new April issue of Reason--available only on newsstands and to subscribers for the next month--includes a huggable poster of our dream-date presidential contender (and a dartboard-sized target of the bum we'll actually get).

You can check out the cover, the table of contents, my editor's note, and a great piece by Contributing Editor Glenn Garvin by going here.

Or better yet, go to your local bookstore or magazine stand and pick up a copy. Or, best of all, subscribe today. For $15, you'll get 11 issues of the richly illustrated, luxuriously printed, highly praised print edition of Reason delivered right to your door.

Comments

[Isaac Bartram]

Eric

In other words you agree with Nick and JB that Shrub is a hypocrite.

[GoonFood]

Lies, more lies, and damned lies! The postman doesn't bring my issue to my door. Lazy bastard...

[Dan]

In other words you agree with Nick and JB that Shrub is a hypocrite.

He's definitely a hypocrite.

However, given a choice between a free-trader who hypocritically opposes free trade to get himself elected, and a person who opposes opposes free trade for ideological reasons, I prefer the former every time. If nothing else, I can depend on him doing the right thing once it's in his interests to do so; the ideologue, on the other hand, is never going to do the right thing.

[Eric]

Isaac,
I think he belives in reelection more than he does in free trade. He'll nevery say that, of course.

[Mo]

Dan,
You are very rarely given those two options. Generally you get the hypocrite free-trader and the hypocrite anti-free trader. So the only difference is that the free-trader will only vote for free trade when it is politically nuetral. If either one is "forced" to due to electoral or political calculation they are the same. If it is politically dangerous to support free trade, they will vote the same. So only in the vast minority of trade issues, the ones where no one cares either way, will the hypocrite free-trader be better. Don't get me wrong, all else equal, I'll vote for a free-trader over a non-free trader any day. However, if they don't demonstrate a willingness to support free trade principles, even when it's unpopular, the "bonus points" they get from me goes way down. That is simply because when it comes to trade, the hypocrite of one side won't be much better than the hypocrite of the other side.

I don't deny there will be benefits as far as appointments and policy decisions, but I don't see Bush being much better, if at all, overall on trade than Kerry would be and he's worse than Clinton.

[Andrew]

Oh Hell! Even Reagan signed some steel tariffs. To describe the normal functioning of consensus government as "hypocrisy" serves no useful purpose...and is basically sorta high-school. Bush I actually did himself some important damage during the last big recession by foot-dragging on raising the minimum wage, extending unemployment-- what was the point, they passed anyway?

It is sensible for politicians in a consensus society to do things constituents want, with mis-givings...DUH!

[Mo]

Andrew,
It's not like Bush was dragged kicking and screaming into those steel and lumber tariffs. The only people he satisfied were people in the industry. It's one thing to pander and it's another to admit when the tide of popular support is against you and you need to concede. I have no problem with the latter, it's the former that bothers me. He retreated from his principles (if he is a principled free-trader, hard to tell what any politician's priciples are) without much of a fight or consensus against him.

If this was the only thing I disliked about Bush, I would give him a pass.

[Critic]

It smells good, too. Using a different paper?

[Jason Ligon]

I have to say, Nick, that for 2003 I upped my contribution to RPPI (paid in December), and I just got a personal, signed letter from Nick Gillespie asking me for more money.

Is this a phase of expanding into new markets or is this more of an, "Omigod, the bank is coming for our presses!"

[Jean Bart]

Does Reason distribute in Europe?

[mike]

Having just read it last night, I can attest it is Great, Hilarious, and Well Drawn. Such a deft combination of humor and insight is worth every penny you must dig out of the couch to BUY THIS ISSUE! Reason is the one mag I would take to the deserted island. MORE PLEASE!

[Nick Gillespie]

Jean Bart:

You can get a subscription in Europe (costs a bit more and takes longer to receive) but I don't believe we're on newsstands there).

In answer to your question in the earlier post: Yes, Bush was/is a hypocrite on free trade. Certainly, his willingness to slap tariffs on steel and lumber show that he's no principled free trader.

[Eric]

Nick,
I think Dubya does believe in free trade. It's just that he believes in his own re-election more. When forced to choose between what he (wronggly) considers two competing principles, he'll go with reelection every time.

[Eric]

Nick,
I think Dubya does believe in free trade. It's just that he believes in his own reelection more. When forced to choose between what he (wronggly) considers two competing principles, he'll go with reelection every time.