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I’ve been going through a bit of a political evolution over the past few years, and after the midterm elections, I’m going in a slightly different direction. I got to discuss this journey with Larry Sharpe, who ran as a Libertarian for New York governor, in an appearance on “The Sharpe Way.”

The main theme of the conversation is the failure of the Republican Party to deliver results even in an election season in which we should have seen a red wave. If you’re anything like me, you have likely been deeply frustrated by the leadership of the GOP and its reckless disregard for its base. It seems the only thing they excel at is ignoring the pleas and demands of their constituents.

We are going to see even more evidence of this when Ronna McDaniel is re-elected as Republican National Committee Chair despite consistent electoral losses. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy will almost certainly become Speaker of the House and the leader of congressional Republicans. To put it simply, instead of pivoting in a way that enables them to actually work for the American people, the GOP is going to choose business as usual because they do not want to win.

During our conversation, Sharpe perfectly summed up the situation: “Democrats are the party of bad ideas and Republicans are the party of no ideas.”

Going forward, I’m focusing on liberty. I’m going to use my efforts where they will likely be most effective – and appreciated. The liberty movement is growing as both Republican and Democratic voters have grown tired of their respective parties.

This does not mean I plan to join the Libertarian Party. But what makes me optimistic about the movement is that liberty-minded folks of any party – yes, that even includes some Democrats – can work to push the leaders we need at the local and state level, which leads me to my next point. With both parties having such a stranglehold on electoral politics nationally, it makes more sense to focus locally and statewide to start. This is what I will be doing in my home state of Texas and even elsewhere if the opportunity presents itself.

Liberty must be local. Your mayor has more of an impact on your life than the president in most cases. This is something conservatives used to understand. But the party claiming to be conservative has worked overtime to show it is anything but.

I’ll be writing more about this going forward, and I’m excited at the prospect of seeing what possibilities there are when it comes to breaking out of the establishment Democrat/Republican paradigm. But in the meantime, check out our conversation and let me know what you think!