Our Purpose
The purpose of the Classical Liberal Caucus is to advance and protect the principles of Liberalism in the Libertarian Party.
By promoting the activism and candidacy of Classical Liberals in the Libertarian Party, we will strive to hold it to the principles of philosophers such as Frederick Douglass, Thomas Paine, Frédéric Bastiat, John Locke, and Friedrich Hayek.
Our Platform
THE SOLE PURPOSE OF GOVERNMENT is to protect the inherent natural rights of the individual. Those rights include, but are not limited to, life, liberty, property, expression, and the pursuit of happiness. There is no better way to preserve and promote those individual rights than the Rule of Law, freedom of international movement and trade, economic freedom, peaceful foreign policy, sound monetary policy, democratic principles, and respect for human dignity.
RULE OF LAW should be preserved by abolishing any laws that do not protect one person’s life, liberty, or property from direct harm by another, or restrict a person’s ability to protect themselves and others. Carceral punishment and the death penalty are unjust, and a just system should focus on restoring those harmed, not perpetuating harm. Policies that remove essential due process and inhibit the ability of our system to provide justice, such as excessive cash bail, coercive plea bargaining, and qualified immunity, should be abolished.
FREEDOM OF INTERNATIONAL MOVEMENT AND TRADE allows peaceful persons and goods to cross borders. National immigration quotas, limits on temporary work visas, protectionist tariffs, and other measures such as the Jones Act are not necessary for national security, produce negative economic effects, and are harmful to human liberty.
ECONOMIC FREEDOM allows individuals to hire, buy, sell, and trade, without hindrance. Restricting the sale of products or services through barriers to entry and other impositions, such as Occupational Licensing, barrier crime laws, Certificates of Need, retail licensing, and restrictive zoning, are a violation of property rights.
PEACEFUL FOREIGN POLICY opposes foreign wars and entanglements, and supports pursuing diplomatic solutions wherever possible. Our military should be brought home and refocused on the defense of the citizens of the United States. Tariffs and economic sanctions impose immense economic costs, fail to achieve their stated policy goals, and foster political dysfunction.
SOUND MONETARY POLICY funds the government voluntarily, reduces it to its smallest functional size, and ends its monopoly on currency. Taxes on production, such as the income tax, are particularly burdensome, and ending those should be a priority.
DEMOCRATIC PRINCIPLES protect the right of individuals to peacefully petition and alter their government without need for violence. Redistricting, voting systems, and voting methods must ensure equal and fair representation for a republican form of government, while protecting the constitutional rights of political minorities.
RESPECT FOR HUMAN DIGNITY promotes a culture of tolerance in which people are judged as individuals and demands equal treatment of everyone by the government. Prejudice and dehumanization only serve to empower the state, and are the first step in taking away liberty. Liberty is both cosmopolitan and universal; it belongs to everyone, everywhere, all the time.
Our Values
Treat others as you want to be treated.
An issue with someone else should be brought to that person privately.
Speak up and respect others when they do.
Be trustworthy and honest.
The word liberal should never be used in vain.