Why Jesse Ventura No Longer Supports the Third Party Movement

During the 2008 Presidential Election, Larry King asked Jesse Ventura whether he planned on voting for McCain or Obama. "You're gonna have to vote for one of the candidates," said King, insinuating that Ventura had to choose between the Republican and Democrat offerings.

"No, I'm not. I never vote Democrat or Republican. I'll pick someone else. There'll be a Libertarian on the ballot. There'll be someone else on the ballot. I will not vote for a Republican or a Democrat," said Ventura. To anyone familiar with Ventura's frequent criticism of the two party system, Ventura's statement shouldn't come as a surprise, especially considering that Ventura won the 1998 Minnesota Gubernatorial election as a third party candidate.

Why Jesse Ventura Didn't Run for Minnesota Senate in 2008

In the 2008 general election, Democratic candidate Al Franken tried to unseat incumbent Republican Minnesota Senator Norm Coleman. Not surprisingly, former Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura, a proud independent, didn't like either candidate. "Franken's a carpetbagger. Coleman, on the other hand, he's your quintessential chicken hawk, " said Ventura on Hannity.

"Carpetbagger," a word from the civil war era, signifies a nonresident or new resident who seeks private gain from an area often by meddling in its business or politics. Franken grew up in Minnesota but hadn't lived there for over 30 years before deciding to move back and run for Senate. "If he loses this race I'd be very surprised to see if he keeps living in Minnesota," said Ventura.

Why Jesse Ventura Lives in Mexico Half the Year

On Charles Barkley's short-lived television show, Listen Up!, somebody asked Jesse Ventura his opinion on then president George W. Bush. Ventura said, "He's a former governor and he told all of us governors that he was going back to old federalism which means powers to the states and he's done just the opposite. He's taken more from the states."

Ventura, obviously bothered by Bush's flip-flop, said, "I'm a believer that states should be able to self-govern. The federal government should only be national defense and national issues. Every state should have their own destiny to be able to pick and choose so that you as a citizen can decide what state fits you best and go live there."

Two Ways Jesse Ventura Wants to Improve America's Voting Ballot

Jesse Ventura's got two problems with America's voting ballots. First, he doesn't like that they list a candidate's political party next to the candidate's name. "When you go into vote there should just be a name. There should not be a party designation underneath it," said Ventura on Howard Stern.

Ventura feels that listing candidates' parties next to their names encourages misinformed voting. "You're voting the party, not the person," said Ventura, "If you eliminate the party on the ballot then you as a voter have to educate yourself. What does John Smith stand for? What does Bill Jones stand for?"