Both the Republicans and the Democrats have nominated presidential candidates that a solid majority of voters really don’t like. Neither candidate has any respect for the U.S. Constitution. Some things they say sound as if they haven’t even read the Constitution.

The Clintons are a couple of grifters from Arkansas (New York, of late) who are practiced liars. Hillary Clinton brushed off being publicly nailed to the wall by FBI Director James Comey for several lies and launched right on into her next lie without batting an eyelash.

“The Donald” is a narcissistic, bombastic demagogue who is so unqualified for the presidency that many in his own party refuse to support him. The only reason he has gotten this far is that voters are finally revolting against “the establishment” —politicians and the Republican/Democrat duopoly that have been taking our country in the wrong direction for decades.

Given the saturation coverage of Trump and Clinton, one could be forgiven for thinking there is no other choice. But there is a third, refreshingly good and fiercely independent choice that will appear on the ballot in all 50 states plus the District of Columbia.

He is Gary Johnson, former two-term governor of New Mexico, who is the Libertarian Party nominee.

Gov. Johnson’s running mate is William Weld, former two-term governor of Massachusetts. Both are libertarians who ran as Republicans in heavily Democratic states. They were effective, popular and overwhelmingly re-elected (Weld got an unprecedented 71 percent of the vote). Either governor alone has more applicable government experience than that of Clinton and Trump combined.

The libertarian philosophy can be simply stated as “Live and let live.” Each individual must be free to do as she or he pleases, as long as the equal rights of others are not infringed. More specifically, this means that force must not be used on an individual unless that person has initiated the use of force or fraud.

If you understand this simple but powerful principle, you can easily figure out the libertarian positions on all issues, as they are logically and consistently derived from it.

Government should be small and limited, just as prescribed by the U.S. Constitution. Government’s function is simply to secure the individual’s rights to life, liberty and property. Libertarian principle requires being fiscally responsible and socially tolerant. Gov. Johnson often observes that most Americans generally agree with these ideals and therefore must be libertarians at heart.

Sign up for our newsletter Success! An email has been sent with a link to confirm list signup. Error! There was an error processing your request.

Since its founding in 1971, the Libertarian Party has strongly advocated treating everyone equally as an individual. Libertarians insist that all of the rights of all of the people must be protected all of the time — liberty and justice for all, with no exceptions.

Gov. Johnson supports a very strong national defense, but says foreign interventionism has cost much blood and treasure without making us safer. No more “regime change,” policing the world or “nation building.” Any war we fight must be declared by Congress. This is not isolationism. We actively engage the world with diplomacy and peaceful free trade with all willing partners.

The contrast is stark. The two governors project sanity, honesty, principled consistency and competence. They want to keep the Democrats out of your wallet and the Republicans out of your bedroom and social life.

How awful does the lesser of two evils have to be to jolt the electorate out of its vote-for-the-lesser-of-two-evils rut? How dramatically better does a new choice have to be to gain media coverage and recognition? Will the Commission on Presidential Debates — an organization that seems to exist to keep anyone other than Democrats and Republicans out of the televised debates — be able to deny voters the opportunity to hear Gov. Johnson’s positions this fall?

It seems that the most significant test in many decades will occur this election. If voters do jack up their courage, refuse to waste their vote on the lesser of two evils and instead strike out in a sorely needed different direction, we can have a president whom we respect and who will get our country back on the right track.

In Gov. Johnson’s words: “The political system is broken. Let’s put parties and differences aside while we solve our problems. Together, we’ll stop the spending and end the wars. Together, we’ll restore our industrial might. Together, we’ll rebuild our own roads, bridges, schools and hospitals instead of building them for countries half a world away.

“And if, in four years, we as a people decide we didn’t like peace, prosperity and freedom, we can always vote the authoritarians back into office again.”

Roy Minet, a Mount Joy resident, is the Libertarian Party’s nominee for Pennsylvania auditor general.