Perhaps sensing an opportunity to poach a few voters from the Republican Party ranks—particularly those who are disenfranchised with both the establishment and Christian conservative choices and anti-establishment Donald Trump—Nicholas Sarwark, national chairman of the Libertarian Party, released a message for “Muslim Republicans.”
In that message, he says he is outraged by Donald Trump’s proposal to halt Muslim immigration to the U.S. He then offers voters who share his view an alternative to the GOP:
“I share your outrage and hurt at Donald Trump’s recent comments and policy suggestions about Muslims. I share your outrage and hurt that he still is polling well among Republicans. I share your outrage and hurt that we should even have to discuss such matters. But obviously we do.
“Freedom of religion is one of our most sacred American values, protected by our Constitution. Never should someone be disparaged, profiled, or have their rights infringed upon because of their religious faith. Republicans like to talk a good game about our Constitution but, clearly, many are making an exception when it comes to religious liberty. This is quite sad and it is this kind of double standard that has caused so many liberty-loving people to leave the Republican Party and find a better home in the Libertarian Party.
“If you have not previously considered the Libertarian Party, I encourage you to do so now. We are an extremely diverse group of people who are passionate about liberty … about all rights, of all people, all the time. We do not denigrate or disparage any group. We respect the humanity of all people and their rights to make their own decisions about their lives. Simply put: Libertarianism is the idea that every person has the right to pursue happiness in any way they wish as long as it doesn’t hurt people or take their stuff.
“I know many of your families have fled repressive regimes abroad in search of peace, prosperity, and liberty in the United States. I hope you have found good things here. No country is perfect and recent weeks have reminded us of that. But I maintain that, despite our imperfections, the United States is one of the best places on the planet for liberty-loving people. Our Constitution does protect your rights, and it will continue to. And Libertarians nationwide always will stand with you also, advocating your rights and the rights of all people to live freely.
“Friend, if you find that the Republican Party continues to disparage you, please consider a home in the Libertarian Party where we respect all rights, of all people, all the time.”
The audience Sarwark identifies in his message is quite small. According to the Pew Research Center, there are only 2.8 million American Muslims—although the Council on American-Islamic Relations claims there are about 7 million—of which only 51 percent are registered to vote.
The Pew report also states Muslim Americans who are registered to vote skew decidedly toward Democrats by a 7-to-1 margin. It states about 11 percent of American Muslim voters identify as or lean toward the Republican Party. Based on the Pew numbers, that’s just 175,000 voters.
President Barack Obama seemingly out-performed those statistics in both 2008 and 2012. In his first general election, he received 89 percent of the American Muslim vote, while in 2012, he got nearly 86 percent.
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