cannabisnews.com: Steve Kubby Enters Race for Party's VP Nomination





Steve Kubby Enters Race for Party's VP Nomination
Posted by FoM on June 28, 2000 at 12:20:05 PT
News & Features
Source: Libertarian Party News
A new contender has jumped into the race for the Libertarian Party's vice presidential nomination: Steve Kubby, the LP's 1998 candidate for governor in California.On June 21, Kubby announced he decided to seek the VP nomination to "force a debate about the failed, police War on Drugs onto center stage in the November election."
Kubby, 53, will face off against Art Olivier, the former mayor of Bellflower, California, and Ken Krawchuk, the LP's 1998 candidate for governor in Pennsylvania, at the Libertarian National Convention in Anaheim, California, June 29 to July 3, 2000.Kubby was inspired to enter the VP race at the last minute, he said, by the recent death of medical marijuana activist Peter McWilliams.The #1 bestselling author and LP member died in a grisly fashion on June 14, choking on his vomit after a court refused to allow him access to medical marijuana while out on bail. McWilliams had been arrested for growing the medical marijuana he used to control the nausea that was a common side-effect of his AIDS and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma medications."The death of my good friend, Peter McWilliams, galvanized me into political action," said Kubby. "Peter was a brilliant author and American patriot who was killed for his political beliefs -- by an overdose of government."McWilliams' books inspired people to fight for their rights. Those responsible for the death of Peter have only added fuel to the fire. They killed the messenger, but the very message they tried to smother will burn more brilliantly than ever."McWilliams' death struck close to home, said Kubby, because he is also a medical marijuana patient, under treatment for adrenal cancer.And like McWilliams, Kubby and his wife Michele were arrested on January 19, 1999, and charged with cultivating medical marijuana. Their case is expected to come to trial this summer.Although the use of medical marijuana is legal in California, both Kubby and McWilliams were arrested on federal marijuana charges, since the federal Drug Enforcement Agency has refused to recognize the California law.If he wins the LP's vice presidential nomination, Kubby said he will use his trial to bring attention to the federal government's war against medical marijuana, and the War on Drugs in general."This is going to be the Scopes Monkey Trial for medical marijuana, with mainstream media coverage," he said.As a candidate, he will hammer the "Demopublicans" on "all the harm and misery" the War on Drugs causes, said Kubby."We are going to make the most of this opportunity to educate Americans in our campaign for Vice President of the United States," he said.Because of the trial, Kubby may not be able to leave California to campaign, he said.Kubby's name will be placed into nomination at the convention, he said, by Richard Cowan, former Executive Director of NORML and current editor of MarijuanaNews.com."I am deeply honored that a respected spokesman for our movement, who has served with distinction for over two decades in the cause of freedom, will make the nominating speech on my behalf," said Kubby.Kubby is the National Director of the American Medical Marijuana Association, and played a key role in the 1996 passage of California's Proposition 215, which legalized medical marijuana. Professionally, he is the publisher of an online recreation magazine, Alpine World. He won approximately 1% of the gubernatorial vote in 1998, and has said he is considering running again in 2002.Kubby and his wife Michele are parents of two children. They live in Laguna Beach, California.The party's presidential and vice presidential candidates will be selected by LP delegates at the National Convention in Anaheim, California, June 29-July 3, 2000.For information on the Steve Kubby for Vice President campaign, visit: http://www.kubby.comDirect Link To Announcement:http://www.lp.org/lpnews/0007/kubby.htmlWeb Posted: June 28, 2000Copyright © 1994-2000, the Libertarian Party Related Articles & Web Sites:NORMLhttp://norml.org/DrugSense AMMA http://drugsense.org/amma/Marijuana Newshttp://marijuananews.com/Death of a Crusader http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread6165.shtmlCannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archives:http://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml
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Comment #2 posted by Dan Hillman on June 29, 2000 at 12:17:09 PT
It isn't a horse race.
Seconding what CD1 said. The idea that voting for other than republicrat candidates is "throwing your vote away" seems to spring from the idea that one should vote as if one was planning to collect on a winning horse. Vote your conscience instead.
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Comment #1 posted by CD1 on June 28, 2000 at 15:00:17 PT
MY VOTE
This guy has my vote. I urge all of you NOT to vote Democrat or Republican. Do not believe the powers that be that say your vote will be wasted. Vote Libertarian or Vote the Green Party. VOTE for Anybody. Just don't vote for those two hypocrits that want to arrest you for your "youthful indescretions", but will not answer for their own drug use.
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