Former US Representative Bob Barr of Georgia has just held a press conference, at which he announced that he is running for President of the United States. Barr will be running under the Libertarian ticket, and needs to first win the Libertarian nomination at its national convention that begins May 22.

A conservative former Republican, Barr could end up hurting presumptive GOP nominee John McCain — just as some Democrats fear that Ralph Nader’s independent candidacy could bleed votes from the Democratic nominee.

About Bob Barr: 

Bob Barr represented the 7th District of Georgia in the U. S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 2003, serving as a senior member of the Judiciary Committee, as Vice-Chairman of the Government Reform Committee, and as a member of the Committee on Financial Services. He now practices law with the Law Offices of Edwin Marger, and runs a consulting firm, Liberty Strategies LLC, headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia and with offices in the Washington, D.C. area.

He is the author of “The Meaning of Is, The Squandered Impeachment and Wasted Legacy of William Jefferson Clinton,” published by Stroud & Hall. He is a member of the Board of Advisors for the Georgetown Journal of Law and Public Policy. Bob remains active in political matters, and serves on the Libertarian Party National Committee. Bob is an adjunct professor at Kennesaw State University in Kennesaw, GA teaching a graduate course on privacy and public policy; and he serves as a national officer for Tau Kappa Epsilon Fraternity.

Bob was appointed by President Reagan to serve as the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia (1986-90), and served as President of Southeastern Legal Foundation (1990-91). He was an official with the CIA (1971-78), and has practiced law for many years.

Bob Barr has traveled widely and spoken to audiences across America and internationally, and has served as an official member of the U.S. delegation at several major United Nations conferences. While in the Congress, he led congressional fact-finding trips to other countries and regions, investigating terrorism, international crime and drug trafficking. He speaks to local and national groups on a regular basis.

About the Libertarian party (taken from their website):

The Libertarian Party is the third largest political party in the United States. Millions of Americans have voted for Libertarian Party candidates in past elections throughout the country, despite the fact that many state governments place every imaginable roadblock in our path in order to keep our candidates off the ballot and deprive voters of a real choice.

Libertarians believe the answer to America’s political problems is the same commitment to freedom that earned America its greatness: a free-market economy and the abundance and prosperity it brings; a dedication to civil liberties and personal freedom that marks this country above all others; and a foreign policy of non-intervention, peace, and free trade as prescribed by America’s founders.

What began with a small group of activists in Colorado has become America’s third largest political party. We are proud of our heritage and the progress we have made since 1971. And the best is yet to come!