Interview with Gary Johnson, Former Governor of New Mexico and Presidential Candidate
Talking immigration, the IRS, the Middle East, and more on 94.3FM, The Talker’s Sanity Check radio show
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- Gary Johnson and Jesse Epps
On the IRS:
Now, I’m advocating eliminating [and] abolishing income tax, corporate tax . . . eliminating the IRS and replacing all existing federal tax with one federal consumption tax. In this case, I’m embracing the Fair Tax. That really covers the base when it comes to immigrants, whether you’re legal or illegal when it comes to paying taxes, because no one would avoid paying one federal consumption tax.
On the NDAA:
I would have never signed the National Defense Authorization Act in the first place, which does not allow for due process. You and I can be arrested and detained without being charged.
On Syria and the Middle East:
Facts get presented in a way that you as a citizen—we as citizens—well, how can you deny us going into Syria to prevent this genocide that’s going on? I mean, that’s the way it gets presented, so everybody stands up and says, “Well, yes, we should prevent that genocide. We should prevent all these killings.” But what we’re not realizing is that we trade one kind of killing for another killing. Our substitute for the tyrant that currently exists ends up to be a new tyrant that’s just propped up by the United States. I believe that we have hundreds of millions of enemies to this country, that would not exist, but for our military intervention and the fact that with our drone strikes, we don’t just knock out the target, we kill hundreds of innocent civilians that have friends, family, [and] coworkers, that vow vengeance against the United States for what has happened to their friend, to their family member, to their co-worker. They vow vengeance that they’re gonna get that vengeance, including giving of their own life to accomplish that.
On Immigration:
Well, we should not build a fence. That’s just a horrific waste of time and money and as simple as it is, if we build a 20’ fence, it’s a 22’ ladder that’s gets over the 20’ fence. And if we want to build the fence 80’ high so that no ladder can get over it, then it will just be tunneled underneath. Look, let’s start with the basic premise that I firmly believe as a former border state governor, and that is that immigration is really a good thing.
On Drug Issues:
Much, if not all, border violence is prohibition-related, prohibition of drugs. I advocate legalizing marijuana. Legalize marijuana [and] arguably 75% of that border violence with Mexico goes away right away, because that’s the cartels’ involvement in just marijuana.
On Good Governance:
“Open Door After 4:00,” so on the third Thursday of every month anybody in the state could come in and talk to me starting at four in the afternoon on five-minute increments. It turned out to be very, very informative and I just thought it was terrific that no one could say that they couldn’t go and see the governor, if they wanted to . . .
