Alabamians Rights & Liberties
I want to make it clear that I greatly respect the integrity of the incumbent Senator from District 3, but I believe that North Alabama citizens (as well as all Alabama citizens) deserve a Full-Time representative (unencumbered by another job) working to ensure American freedom and the pursuit of happiness. Libertarians are fighting hard to regain Alabamian's rights and liberties, and are not focused on maintaining an ultra far-right agenda which suppresses many of the freedoms we deserve.
The current Alabama Legislature has repeatedly blocked Alabamian's rights to vote for inclusion into the nationwide lottery systems, preferring to treat its citizens as children who don’t know what’s good for them, even though recent polls have indicated the desire for inclusion. In the most recent attempt to bring the issue to a vote, the incumbent was one of the key votes which shut it down. Alabamians deserve the right to vote!
Alabamians also have no choice but to use state-controlled ABC stores which stifle competition. Notice how other states have liquor stores conveniently placed in Publix and elsewhere? And as discussed on another page, archaic and overly restrictive medical marijuana laws continue to delay and inhibit usage among those who are weak and ill and desperately need it.
The incumbent’s recently signed legislation makes it a criminal offense to have a secret compartment (even if it is completely empty) in your vehicle. If anyone ever buys a used vehicle, they had better make sure it has never had this modification or you will be considered a criminal. And what exactly is wrong in having a secret place to store your valuables if you are attending a sporting event, parking at the airport, or going somewhere to hike, hunt, or fish? And why lay another burden on law enforcement officials to inspect every nook and cranny during a vehicle stop? This law should be abolished and changed back to physically discovering illegal drugs (or human trafficking) within a vehicle! The next step using this flawed mindset would be to outlaw briefcases, lunchboxes, and backpacks since they similarly have the "potential" for carrying illegal drugs.
The same mentality is in effect for the “Open Container” law. Any driver who displays erratic behavior and is subsequently determined via standard testing to be compromised by alcohol or drugs should be subject to existing DUI penalties, but not on the mere presence of an open container. This law creates high-school situations where vehicle occupants may try to hide containers and deceive law enforcement officers, where there really may be no actual violation of DUI laws. If 3 passengers are inebriated while the designated driver is not, there is no problem, but guess who gets penalized if just one of the passengers has an open container. Another case of a short-sighted law which needs to be erased.
Additionally, all Alabamians regardless of party affiliation, are forced to pay the bill for what amounts to a beauty pageant for Republican and Democrat candidates as a part of the primary and run-off elections. Alabama would save millions of dollars if they cast off this unfair election process and required each party to pay for their own primary or caucus, as is currently done in many other states. The Libertarian Party does not impose any costs to Alabamians during the primary season and selects candidates internally based upon volunteers who have demonstrated talents and abilities, and who have aligned themselves with the principles of liberty and freedom advocated by the Libertarian platform.