PARKER, Colo. — Presidential candidate Gary Johnson visited the Denver metro area to speak at a rally Monday night.
The event was held at the University of Colorado South Denver in Parker. The nominee for the Libertarian party has 7 percent support in Colorado, according to the latest polling.
“When somebody says to you that you are wasting your vote, how is there not a more wasted vote than voting for somebody you don’t believe in?” Johnson said.
About 1,200 supporters attended the rally during which Johnson spoke on several issues and themes of his campaign, including balancing the budget, curbing health care costs and support of the Second Amendment.
He gave a detailed description of the U.S. role in the Syria conflict, and a reference to Aleppo, a response after he recently had a gaffe during a TV interview when he failed to recognize the city, saying, “What is Aleppo?”
Libertarian vice presidential nominee Bill Weld said Monday he believes Johnson “would be the best president because of the policies” that he has proposed, as the former Republican governor sought to redirect focus from his recent comment that he’s “not sure anybody is more qualified than Hillary Clinton.”
Weld said he meant he’s “not sure there is anybody more qualified on paper” than Clinton, clarifying that he thinks Johnson would be the best person for the job once in office because of his ideas.
“Well, I said I’m not sure there is anybody more qualified than she is on paper. I mean, she’s got quite a resume. Six or eight years as a senator. She was known for mastering her brief in the Senate and four years as secretary of state. On paper, that is a pretty good resume,” Weld said.
“I went on to say that I think Gary Johnson would be the best president because of the policies, fiscal and military and otherwise, that he would implement.”
Weld also pushed back on criticism of Johnson’s recent high-profile foreign policy gaffes, such as when he failed to identify the Syrian city of Aleppo during an interview and couldn’t name a world leader he respected when asked during an MSNBC town hall event.
“You know, pop quizzes on TV are just not Gary’s long suit. But I think having the right policies is more important than doing well on a pop quiz,” the former Massachusetts governor said.
Weld articulated Johnson’s argument against military interventionism, adding, “Gary Johnson has said that, and that’s more important than the place names.”
Weld was also asked if he is concerned about the Libertarian ticket’s potential role as presidential spoiler, as recent polls have shown Johnson and Weld cutting into Clinton’s support among younger voters.
But Weld dismissed concerns that his ticket could hand Donald Trump the presidency.
“On the technical question of who we’re taking votes from, I’m quite sure at the end of the day we will end up with a lot more moderate Republican voters than we will votes coming from Mrs. Clinton. That’s just my view, but I do think that’s all right,” he said.