Libertarian Republican
A libertarian Republican is a politician or Republican Party member who has advocated libertarian policies while typically voting for and being involved with the United States Republican Party.
Beliefs and size
The Republican Party is divided into factions; in a 2014 Pew Research Center survey on political typology and polarization, 12% of Republicans described themselves as libertarian. In 2012, the libertarian branch of the party was described as smaller than other branches, including Tea Party voters, pragmatic "Main Street" Republicans, and evangelical Christian conservatives. However, the party's libertarian bloc is larger than other factions, such as former Northeastern moderate Republicans and hawkish "national security" voters who favor neoconservativism. Compared to other Republican factions, libertarian Republicans have relatively little party loyalty.According to a 2012 New York Times analysis, libertarian Republicans have a variety of motivating issues. On economic and domestic policy, they favor deregulation and tax cuts generally, repeal of the Affordable Care Act, and protecting gun rights. On social issues, they favor privacy and oppose the USA Patriot Act and oppose the War on Drugs. On foreign and defense policy, libertarian Republicans are non-interventionists. While a majority of American libertarians believe abortion should be legal in most or all cases, the issue remains hotly contested within the movement, and libertarian Republicans tend to oppose legal abortion and identify as pro-life. According to one 2012 New York Times opinion article, two-thirds of libertarian Republicans are males.
The Republican Liberty Caucus, which describes itself as "the oldest continuously operating organization in the Liberty Republican movement with state charters nationwide," was founded in 1991. Among the caucus's past chairs are Chuck Muth, Congressman Ron Paul, and Dave Nalle. The group's statement of principles affirms "the principle that individual rights and liberties are unlimited" and calls for free trade; the "privatization of all government assets"; the abolition of many federal agencies; the repeal of most current federal taxes in favor of a single flat income tax or national sales tax; and the phase-out of "compulsory government retirement, disability, and health programs."
The House Liberty Caucus is a Congressional caucus formed by independent Representative Justin Amash of Michigan, at the time a Republican. In 2014, the group "consisted of about 30 libertarian-inclined Republicans." The group is a rival to the conservative Republican Study Committee, which favors high military spending.
Public figures
Cabinet-level officials
- Former Director Mick Mulvaney of the Office of Management and Budget; former acting White House Chief of Staff; former U.S. Representative from South Carolina
- Former Director David Stockman of the Office of Management and Budget; former U.S. Representative from Michigan; self-described libertarian.
U.S. Representatives
- Representative Justin Amash of Michigan – Chairman of the Liberty Caucus; left Republican Party in 2019 to become an Independent. He is now a registered member of the Libertarian Party.
- Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky – described as "a Northern Kentucky Republican with libertarian leanings," Massie is a "self-styled libertarian" who has received libertarian support, although he has also described himself as a "'constitutional conservative' within the Republican Party."
- Representative Warren Davidson of Ohio.
- Representative Tom McClintock of California - described as "libertarian leaning" by Reason magazine.
- Former Representative Raúl Labrador of Idaho
- Former Representative Dana Rohrabacher of California
- Former Representative Mark Sanford of South Carolina – often described as a figure with libertarian views; claimed to have turned down an offer from Libertarian Party presidential nominee Gary Johnson to be his vice presidential running mate in the 2016 election.
- Former Representative Bob Barr of Georgia
- Former Representative Helen Chenoweth-Hage, of Idaho.
- Former Representative Kerry Bentivolio of Michigan
- Former Representative Connie Mack IV of Florida – described as "a staunch fiscal conservative...with libertarian tendencies."
- Former Representative Ron Paul of Texas – longstanding Libertarian Republican icon; unsuccessfully ran for president in 1988 as the Libertarian nominee.
- Former Representatives Howard H. Buffett of Nebraska, Ralph W. Gwinn of New York, Frederick C. Smith of Ohio, and H.R. Gross of Iowa – members of the House described by Murray Rothbard as "extreme right... solidly isolationist and opposed to foreign wars and interventions, and roughly free-market and libertarian in domestic affairs."
U.S. Senators
- Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky – is sometimes regarded as libertarian-leaning, although David Boaz of the Cato Institute notes that "Paul doesn't claim to be a libertarian, and he takes positions that many libertarians disagree with."
- Senator Mike Lee of Utah – described as an economic and civil libertarian.
- Former Senator Barry Goldwater of Arizona
- Former Senator Mark Hatfield of Oregon
- Former Senator George Frisbie Hoar of Massachusetts
State governors
- Former Governor Gary Johnson of New Mexico – served two terms as governor as a Republican and ran for President as a Republican in 2011, but switched from the Republican Party to the Libertarian Party in 2011.
- Former Governor William Weld of Massachusetts – As a Republican governor of Massachusetts, Weld self-identified as a libertarian Republican. Later, Weld drifted toward the Libertarian Party. In 2006, Weld unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for New York governor; he gained the Libertarian Party endorsement that year before dropping out of the race; In 2016, Weld joined the Libertarian Party to run for vice president as the running mate of Gary Johnson. In 2019, Weld rejoined the Republican Party to launch a primary challenge to President Donald Trump.
State legislators
- Kurt Bills, former Minnesota state representative; describes himself as a "libertarian-leaning constitutional conservative"; Reason magazine writes that "most of his positions align with mainstream libertarian ideas. He is hostile to the drug war, favors a non-interventionist foreign policy, and embraces Austrian economics."
- Eric Brakey, former Maine state senator. Unsuccessfully ran for U.S. Senate in 2018. Worked for Ron Paul's 2012 campaign, led the Defense of Liberty PAC.
- Laura Ebke, former Nebraska state senator – elected to the legislature in 2014 and advanced libertarian positions. She described herself in early 2015 as "a Republican and a conservative libertarian," In 2016, Ebke switched to the Libertarian Party.
- Nick Freitas, Virginia state Delegate. Unsuccessfully ran for U.S. Senate in 2018. Described as having a "conservative voting record and libertarian streak."
- Richard Tisei, former Massachusetts state senator and state Senate minority leader; identifies as a "traditional Northeast libertarian" in the social and fiscal senses.
Authors and scholars
- Nobel Prize–winning economist Milton Friedman
- Author Zora Neale Hurston
- Wall Street Journal writer Stephen Moore
- Economist and philosopher Murray Rothbard
- Economist Mark Skousen
Others
- Jerry Doyle, radio talk show host
- Clint Eastwood, actor, filmmaker – describes himself as a libertarian and says that he has "always been a libertarian," but is associated with the Republican Party.
- Jack Hunter, radio talk show host, political commentator, former aide to Rand Paul, editor of Rare Politics – has written of his "attraction to libertarianism." Hunter formerly expressed neo-Confederate views, which libertarian commentator and law professor Ilya Somin criticized in 2013 as inconsistent with libertarianism.
- Glenn Jacobs, Professional Wrestler with WWE and current Republican Mayor of Knoxville, TN.
- Kennedy, TV commentator and former MTV VJ
- Dennis Miller, television personality – described himself as a "conservative libertarian" in the 1990s, although "his commentary always contained a streak of right-wing populism." After the September 11 attacks, Miller's views, particularly on foreign and defense policy, drifted further to the right.
- Grover Norquist, anti-tax activist and Republican figure; economic libertarian identified with "support for supply-side economics and skepticism about climate science."
- P. J. O'Rourke, humorist, author – libertarian-conservative Republican, although he endorsed Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential campaign.
- Austin Petersen, former Libertarian Party presidential candidate and former Republican candidate for US Senate in Missouri in 2018.
- Kid Rock, musician, self-described as libertarian-leaning.
- Wayne Allyn Root, author and radio host
- Peter Schiff, investment broker – described as "libertarian" or "libertarian-leaning"; unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for the 2010 election for U.S. Senate in Connecticut.
- Mark Spitznagel, hedge fund manager
- Roger Stone, Republican political consultant, lobbyist and strategist, self-described libertarian.
- Peter Thiel, Silicon Valley businessman, PayPal co-founder – a registered Republican and self-described libertarian.
- Vince Vaughn, actor, self-professed libertarian.