Roth still has itch to run for president
Independent bid a long shot but radio host still has hope
Spokane radio talk show host Laurie Roth has lost her bid for the Constitution Party’s presidential nomination, but now is considering a run as a tea party independent.
That’s a tough route to the White House, she conceded in typically colorful language Tuesday: “It’s going to be like climbing up Mount Everest in a bikini with no oxygen. I think my country’s worth it.”
Roth, who hosts a syndicated radio show broadcast from Spokane, was among candidates seeking the nomination at that conservative third party’s convention in Nashville, Tenn., last weekend. Former U.S. Rep. Virgil Goode won the party’s top spot; Roth finished fifth.
She said she felt called by God to run, and she sought the nomination partly because it’s difficult for an independent to meet different laws in the 50 states to make the ballot. She thought the Constitution Party was a good fit for her views on fiscal accountability, a new tax system to replace the federal income and all other taxes, and strong support of the military.
Now she’s contemplating a return to her original idea of an independent campaign. By mid-June, she’ll know whether she can gather enough support from tea party organizations and other patriot groups around the country to help gather signatures.
“If you think outside the box, there are ways to explore ballot access,” she said.
If she makes the ballot, her campaign plan is much the same as before: build on the media attention she started to get at the convention. Get recognized as “the feisty, original woman with ideas,” such as a plan to replace all federal taxes with a simple 2 percent “point of sale” tax on all transactions. Pick up support from people unhappy with the choice of Barack Obama or Mitt Romney. Get a boost from a documentary that could be released this summer of her recovery from a near-fatal motorcycle accident in 2005, when she collided with a deer. Convince voters she’s one of them and not just a waste of their ballot.
Roth acknowledges that’s a long shot, something that could require “a miracle of God.” But she’s still considering it.
“I don’t feel like quitting just yet.”