I love Gary Johnson. When forced between the rock and the hard place that is Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, I believe he is the crowbar that can pull us free from the crushing reality that the 2016 presidential election may indeed come down to the "lesser of two evils."
I'm a huge fan of a lot of what he stands for, but with every politician there are always skeletons in the closet and negatives we may choose to ignore for the sake of posterity. There's a hell of a lot more I'm willing to look past with him than I am with the other two clowns, but I'm writing this because I believe we all deserve to be as informed as possible about all aspects of all candidates. Just call me the proverbial devil's advocate.
I scoured the Internet looking for the facts on Gary Johnson; below are the most damning pieces of information I discovered.
1. He's admitted to marijuana use.
In an interview with The New Yorker's Ryan Lizza, he admits to having ceased his consumption while on the campaign trail, but he's partaken in smoking and consumption of edibles multiple times a week in the past, though he vows he will not use while in office.
2. He's divorced.
The divorce rate in the United States is somewhere between 40 and 50 percent, so this doesn't ostracize him by any means, but it will likely make him less favorable among the evangelical bloc; however, there would be a First Lady in the White House in the form of his live-in fiancee (another chink in the armor in the eyes of many Americans), Kate Prusack.
3. He might not know who Harriet Tubman is.
Underground railroad? Might appear on the 20 dollar bill? Yes, that Harriet Tubman. At the Libertarian National Convention back in May, Johnson was directed into a room in the convention center that was named for Harriet Tubman, and he verbalized a lack of knowledge on who she is. An aide jogged his memory, thankfully.
In the words of Porky Pig, "that's all folks!" Seriously, that's it. I scoured the internet for some dirt on good ol' Gar-bear, and I came up almost empty-handed, save the close to completely overlook-able aforementioned points.
He's scaled mountains. He lives in a house he built himself. He's a fiscal conservative and leans more liberal when it comes to social issues. With regards to his personal life, scandal and controversy, he's just about as close to perfect as high-profile politicians come, especially in comparison to the sleaze ball that is Donald Trump and the generally horrifying woman with blood on her hands that is Hillary Clinton.
For you naysayers concerned that Gary can't win and that third parties will split the vote, to you I say sit down. Mr. Johnson and his running mate, Bill Weld, have devised a strategy that could very well play out in their favor come November. You can read about it here.
To those of you who stand behind the Johnson/Weld ticket, I encourage you not to back down. Remind yourself every day between now and November what turned you to this more-than-plucky third party candidate in the first place. Don't bow to pressure in the voting booth. Like Ted Cruz advised in his RNC speech, "Vote with your conscience."
No matter who you choose to vote for, please, please get out and vote. You can learn how to register to vote in your state here.
