2008
Missouri LP
Candidates

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 13, 2003
P.O.C. Thomas L. Knapp
thomaslknapp@earthlink.net


PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE TO MAKE ST. LOUIS APPEARANCES

No entourage trails behind Michael Badnarik as he travels the 
country. No limousines wait to whisk him to $500-a-plate fundraisers. 
His is a lonely quest, a presidential campaign sustained by local 
activists, word of mouth -- and lots and lots of hard work.

"I may be running the most cost-effective presidential campaign in 
history," says Badnarik, contender for the Libertarian Party's 2004 
presidential nomination. "I doubt if any other candidate in the 
modern era has covered 10,000 miles on $5,000." Badnarik, 49, of 
Buda, TX, drives or flies stand-by, but he gets where he's going -- 
not just to Libertarian events, but to grass roots political 
happenings all over the nation, meeting voters and speaking sincerely 
and passionately about the freedom, the Constitution and America's 
future.

Badnarik's second stop in the St. Louis area comes this Friday as he 
sweeps through Missouri on a three-city tour. In the St. Louis metro 
area, he intends to delivery a policy speech to a student audience at 
Washington University, drop in on a few local events of interest, and 
attend a reception held by local Libertarian activists. After that, 
he'll be heading for Columbia and Kansas City. Badnarik has made 
several talk radio appearances in Missouri in advance of the tour.

His platform? It's called "Bill of Rights Enforcement." And for 
Americans seeking an alternative to the creeping encroachment of 
government upon their civil liberties, Badnarik is a breath of fresh 
air. "A right is something you have the authority to do without 
asking for permission," he says. "A privilege is something that a 
higher authority allows you to do. The Constitution is supplemented 
by the Bill of RIGHTS, not a 'Bill of Privileges.' It enumerates some 
of the things that you can do without asking for permission. ... I 
consider it a gross violation of the Constitution for any of our 
branches of government to loosely interpret these written powers to 
suit their own agenda."

What this means, in practice, is that President Michael Badnarik 
would use the power of the Oval Office to bring a halt to federal 
activities not authorized in the Constitution -- including the war on 
drugs, federal intervention in education and the issue that caused 
him to become politically involved: gun control. "Every single one of 
the estimated 20,000 gun laws in this country is unconstitutional -- 
and the rights of the American people are non-negotiable."

With seven months remaining before the Libertarian Party selects its 
presidential nominee at a national convention in Atlanta, Badnarik 
isn't resting. He's just getting started as he contests the 
nomination with one other serious candidate and a longer slate of 
interested, but relatively inactive, opponents. If hard work, 
perseverance and the endorsement of a number of long-time Libertarian 
activists count, he'll head into next November as the presidential 
candidate of America's third largest political party.

-30-
about 475 words


Media information:

Campaign web site: http://www.badnarik.org
Campaign contact phone: 512-799-8200

Local contact:

Thomas L. Knapp
thomaslknapp@earthlink.net
314-721-3960

Appearance details:

* The time and exact venue of Badnarik's Washington University 
appearance is not yet scheduled.

* A reception for Mr. Badnarik will be held at Talayna's in 
Chesterfield (corner of Olive and Woods Mill) from 7-9 p.m. on 
Friday, October 17th. Attendees will be charged $10 at the door for an all-
you-can-eat pizza buffet with soft drinks, with any surplus going to 
the Badnarik campaign.