Kentucky L.P.: Never Mind

Ken Moellman, chairman of the Libertarian Party of Kentucky, says his vice chairman, Joshua Koch, spoke out of turn when he suggested the L.P. might run a Senate candidate against Rand Paul in November. Moellman, who told Talking Points Memo that Koch's comments were "not an official communication or an official stance," has posted this "clarification" on the party's website:

It's now painfully obvious that we need to clarify some things. I've been on the phone all day, which has just been great (sarcasm). Let's get some things cleared up right now:

Rand Paul is not a Libertarian, or a libertarian

We have beat this to death. He's not his father, he is his own man with his own beliefs. I personally respect that he is not a tool of his father or of anyone else. I just disagree with him on certain positions, because I am a libertarian and a Libertarian, and he is neither.

The LPKY is not endorsing anyone in the Senate race

As a party we have no one in this race, and we do not seek to help or harm the candidacy of any candidates other than our own. As a party, it would be completely inappropriate to involve ourselves or in any way devote resources to a candidate outside of the LPKY, when there are great libertarian candidates running as Libertarians for office in Kentucky.

Anything that looked like any sort of endorsement or un-endorsement should be seen as a private individual's opinion, and not the policy of the LPKY.

While our State Party's Constitution does permit the endorsement of candidates outside of the LPKY by a vote of 7/8ths or better in the Executive Committee, the reality is that this has not been done for as long as I have been chair (2007) and for as far back as I remember. The party has historically stayed neutral when there's no Libertarian in a particular race.

We ask that our members, and those who might otherwise look to the LPKY for advice in how to vote, to look at what people say and what people do, and judge them on that, and that alone. Don't be a sheep.

The LPKY has no candidate for US Senate

While technically possible for the LPKY to run a US Senate candidate in 2010, the prospects are very unlikely, despite what some in the media have said.

[Thanks to Gene Berkman for the tip.]