Libertarians in Missouri are confused.
“Government is poisonous,” said Sarah O’Brien, a junior at the University of St. Louis and member of the Libertarian Party. During an interview in Kansas City, she said she supports the party because of its focus on smaller government and its strong sense of direction.
But despite this, O’Brien said that she will be casting her ballot for Barack Obama.
“It’s a hard vote for me. It goes against my values,” said O’Brien. She believed that Obama’s policies offer her support that neither John McCain nor Bob Barr, the Libertarian candidate, have offered.
“As a student, I’m going to need some of the policies he’s going to enact,” O’Brien said. The policies of Obama that she cited as most appealing were universal healthcare and greater financial aid for college students. She expressed displeasure with the Republican and Libertarian Party’s support for the free market during the recent economic crises.
O’Brien is a Missouri native, originally hailing from St. Charles. She said that Missouri was a swing state in this election because Obama is reaching out to the minority vote.
“St. Louis is a battleground,” O’Brien said. She cited the city’s high percentage of Catholics as a support base for conservatives, but noted that St. Louis is still very liberal. She added that there is a lot of distaste for the Bush administration and the war in Iraq.