While most Americans are still catching up on their rest from a hard-fought presidential election, one group of individuals is already on the march: Those who aspire to election in 2012.
Among them is Thomas L. Knapp, who announced his candidacy for the presidential nominations of the Boston Tea Party and the Libertarian Party Tuesday evening.
"I initially planned to announce my 2012 candidacy for the presidency of the United States on April 6th, 2009," said Knapp in a Internet-distributed announcement. "I see, however, that others are already lining up with formal announcements or at least clear indications of their own intent ... and when a fight's brewing, I prefer to get in early."
Citing ideological drift in the Libertarian Party, Knapp, 42, founded the Boston Tea Party in 2006 and served as its vice-presidential nominee this year -- while also running for Congress in his home state of Missouri as a Libertarian Party candidate. He hopes to bring the two parties closer together with his presidential campaign. "The LP has a lot of installed plant -- ballot access, seasoned activists, the things that any party requires to be successful,"
Knapp's campaign organization is embryonic but already in existence. He's appointed Darcy G. Richardson, a noted political historian and veteran of numerous third party campaigns, as his campaign's chief of staff. Also on board is Nick Galindo, an experienced campaign treasurer.
His chances? He's realistic: "We've got a tough row to hoe before we reach political success," he says. "Much of my campaign will be about correcting mistakes the freedom movement has made in the past and positioning us to move forward further and faster."
Campaign Site:
http://www.knapp2012.com
Boston Tea Party:
http://www.bostontea.us
Libertarian Party:
http://www.lp.org
