If there were any doubt that Hillary Clinton and her surrogates are afraid of Gary Johnson, that doubt was eliminated Thursday when a Clinton Super PAC released an attack ad on the Libertarian nominee.
The compilation clips, aimed at former Bernie Sanders supporters, covers a plethora of issues. It begins by highlighting Johnson’s high-profile “gaffes” on Aleppo and his favorite foreign leaders. In perhaps a play for more libertarian voters, the ad also interestingly points out Ron Paul‘s decision to not endorse the Libertarian ticket.
The attack goes on to highlight what are essentially libertarian positions of Johnson, including:
- His support (in principle) for the Trans-Pacific Partnership
- His opposition to Obamacare
- His opposition to gun control
- His skepticism toward minimum wage
- His support for “private” as opposed to “public”
- His desire to abolish income tax, corporate tax, and the IRS
- His support for private prisons
- His support for limiting student loans
- His support for allowing corporations to make political donations
- His opposition to government action on global warming
Throughout the ad, adverse reactions from the socialist Sanders play in the background.
Libertarians should view this ad as not only an attack on Johnson, but on libertarianism in general. If anything, this attack ad from Clinton should mobilize more liberty-minded thinkers to coalesce around Johnson.
Watch the ad below: