Belly Up to the Barr

Will John McCain have trouble rallying conservatives to his cause in November? That calculus may have gotten a little trickier with Bob Barr's entry into the race. Barr, a former Republican congressman from Georgia, announced on Monday that he is seeking the Libertarian Party's nomination for the presidency—raising the prospect that he could become the Ralph Nader of the right.

Barr, who served in the House of Representatives from 1995 to 2003, was best known for his leading role in the 1998 impeachment effort against President Bill Clinton; he was one of the most conservative members on Capitol Hill. But in 2006 Barr exited his party and became a Libertarian, strongly criticizing President Bush's handling of the war in Iraq and the government's infringement on social liberties.

Later this month Barr will join 13 other Libertarian candidates, including Democrat turned Libertarian Mike Gravel, at the party's convention in Denver, Colo. Libertarian leaders expect Barr to be the top vote-getter among the assembled delegates. Critics rushed to denounce Barr as a spoiler, likely to siphon votes from McCain, who is already thought to have a wobbly relationship with the conservative wing of the GOP. Barr rejects the spoiler label and insists he's "in it to win it." NEWSWEEK's Daniel Stone spoke with Barr about the timing of his entrance into the race and how he thinks he can compete. Excerpts:

NEWSWEEK: What was the strategy behind entering the race now?
Bob Barr: The key is that the Libertarian convention is coming up in two weeks, and I figured I needed to do it before then. I couldn't wait much longer.

Why not a few months ago?
I didn't seriously consider it until about five or six weeks ago.

Your critics in the GOP allege that your candidacy will spoil the Republican Party's chances in November. How do you respond?
They have no idea why I'm doing it, and, plus, that's just a knee-jerk reaction. Does anybody getting into the race plan to ask the tough questions or plan to point out some of the areas where McCain is less conservative than he would like people to believe? Those pundits have no idea where my votes would come from, nor do they know about the issues I stand for. As a matter of fact, I suspect the votes I will get will come from folks who would be more inclined to sit out the election in the first place because there's not a real conservative in the race. The votes are not going to come from people that are committed to voting for McCain.