Hmm, maybe this matters...but probably not.
Press Release FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 13, 2008 CONTACT: Stephen Stone CEO, Alan Keyes for President 801-373-5788 Fax: 801-691-0536 sstone@alankeyes.com Alan Keyes to announce break with GOP in Hazleton, PA HAZLETON, Penn. — Former Republican presidential candidate Alan Keyes has chosen April 15 to make a major announcement of his intentions, following indications he has broken with the GOP. A life-long Republican who has increasingly cited the party's failure to match conservative rhetoric with actual performance in the political arena, Keyes said he will reveal his reasons for departing the GOP at a press conference scheduled for 8:30 pm ET, at the Best Western Genetti Inn in Hazleton, PA. The event will be video-streamed live at Keyes' website, www.AlanKeyes.com. Keyes added that he is looking to the Constitution Party as a possible home for his future efforts in politics, including a potential run for president in the 2008 general election. "No other ‘third party' is as well-established as the Constitution Party," said Keyes. "They've been around since 1992, and have built a significant grassroots presence among patriotic, Constitution-minded citizens--with a registered membership of over 350,000. Conservatives have a home in the CP that they can find nowhere else, given the decline in the Republican Party's credibility as a voice and vehicle for conservatism." Regarding his potential third-party candidacy for president in the fall, Keyes said, "I believe people deserve a choice. They certainly deserve a conservative choice--something neither John McCain, Hillary Clinton, nor Barack Obama can offer voters. All they can offer is empty promises based on liberal track records." Symbolic of Keyes' break with the Republican Party is a caricature of the GOP logo--upside down--on the front page of his website. The Constitution Party will hold its nominating convention April 23-26 in Kansas City. According to Dan Smeriglio, a Keyes supporter who is helping to arrange the event, the former Reagan administration diplomat chose to make his announcement in Hazleton because of the town's strong stance on illegal immigration. "I understand a good portion of his speech next week will center on illegal immigration," Smeriglio said. Smeriglio and a group he represents, Voice of the People USA, have been vocal in opposing illegal immigration since Hazleton Mayor Lou Barletta introduced the Illegal Immigration Relief Act in 2006--thrusting Hazleton into national prominence in the movement to stem illegal immigration. Keyes--who has a Ph.D. in government from Harvard and wrote his dissertation on constitutional theory--served as Reagan's Assistant Secretary of State for International Organizations, as well as Ambassador to the United Nations Economic and Social Council, where he represented U.S. interests in the UN General Assembly. ### For high-resolution pictures of Alan Keyes, go to http://archives.alankeyes.com/pictures.php
Comments (8)
Alan who?
Posted by Fidel, MD | April 17, 2008 5:32 PM
Posted on April 17, 2008 17:32
Vote Obama for US Senator.
The communist vs the theocon.
Posted by M. Simon | April 17, 2008 6:23 PM
Posted on April 17, 2008 18:23
And once again, nobody gives a shit.
Posted by Ray | April 17, 2008 6:24 PM
Posted on April 17, 2008 18:24
I always thought my lost allen keys would turn up again, but never in my wildest dreams did I suspect they'd one day run for President. Not as an independent anyway.
Posted by Arty | April 17, 2008 8:55 PM
Posted on April 17, 2008 20:55
So Alan's lusting to run against He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Middle-Named again?
Posted by coriolan | April 17, 2008 11:26 PM
Posted on April 17, 2008 23:26
"No other ‘third party' is as well-established as the Constitution Party," said Keyes. "They've been around since 1992"
Heh. Wow, yeah, that's REALLY a long time.
Alan, I was always somewhat amused by your antics, but don't let the door hit your ass on the way out.
Posted by Baltazar Flotard | April 18, 2008 12:15 AM
Posted on April 18, 2008 00:15
Sigh ...
I was a Keyes supporter in '96 (even donated $100 to get a signed coy of "Masters of the Dream", and met him personally).
When I saw the vote percentage he received in primary elections, I realized that he didn't have whatever it took to get majority support (I also realized that I couldn't consider myself to be a mainstream voter).
After 1996 I received the occasional snailmail from him, including one fundraiser claiming Bill Clinton was going to use FEMA regs to declare himself dictator. My estimation of Keyes diminished a fair bit when Clinton left office in 2001 (now I compare him to the "Truthers" who make the same predictions about George W).
Anyone with a realistic attitude would look at his vote-getting record (those primaries, the Illinois race he lost to Obama) and realize that he would not win as a major party's candidate, let alone a third party. I can only conclude that his reasons for running have more to do with ego or publicity than any genuine desire to have a positive effect on national elections.
Posted by Calvin Dodge | April 20, 2008 5:01 PM
Posted on April 20, 2008 17:01
Alan Keyes Constitution Party Speech Friday Evening, April 25, 2008 as he seeks nomination.
Link: http://archives.alankeyes.com/play.php?mp3=222
Also live stream of Constitution Party convention provided by the Alan Keyes campaign: www.alankeyes.com
Posted by Katrinka Yobotz | April 25, 2008 10:06 PM
Posted on April 25, 2008 22:06