More on Why Romney Can't Appeal to Libertarians (Realignment Watch)

Jerry Taylor at the Cato Institute hits on something I've been discussing for awhile: although Mitt Romney purports to appeal to all the branches of the old Reagan Coalition, the fact is that he really has no appeal to libertarians. Indeed, Taylor points out that Romney's views on trade are not the free market capitalism that libertarians have long championed and which was a cornerstone of the Reagan platform. After all, no free market capitalist would ever argue that an economic problem such as the auto industry's is the result of government doing too little, and that the solution is more corporate welfare.

Taylor calls positions like these what they are: economic fascism, in the historical sense. He further points out something else that I've been arguing- Republicans no longer have anything to offer libertarians, and at least the Dems can offer us something on foreign policy and social issues.

***UPDATE*** Ross Douthat also sees the economic fascism undertone in Romney's campaign.