It matters, but for good or ill? If Root isn’t a true libertarian, if he misrepresents libertarian views, if he “evolves” yet again after he’s safely nominated into his previous pro-war stance, then his being on the radio is very bad for libertarianism.

Not all publicity is good publicity. That’s the cry of Ruwart detractors, no? Well, that applies to Root as well.

BTW, I haven’t come out in favor of Ruwart. I’ve criticized Root, and to a lesser extent Smith. But I haven’t actually endorsed anyone from among the declared candidates.

Not quite true.

I began listening to Grant on WOR-AM in June of 1977, while I was in high school. I’ve followed Grant’s career ever since. When I moved to L.A. in 1987, I wrote repeatedly to the L.A. stations to carry Grant.

Grant’s NYC talk radio career has been rocky.

In 1977, Grant replaced Barry Farber on WOR when Farber decided the run for mayor of NYC on the Conservative Party. Grant occupied the midnight (or was it 11 pm) to 5 am slot, as I recall.

I think then Grant disappeared for a few years. He spent some time in Philadelphia, maybe also a brief stay on WMCA-AM in NYC.

In the early 1980s, Grant came on WABC-AM when that station switched to a talk radi format. He now had a prime “drive time” slot.

Rush Limbaugh came aboard WABC later on, and Rush called Grant his “mentor.”

Grant always wanted to go national. He finally did (was it the early 1990s?) but that national show never really hit it off. I sometimes listened to him on San Diego’s KOGO-AM, which I could sometimes hear, not always, in Los Angeles.

No Los Angeles station would carry Grant.

I think it was in April 1996 that Grant was kicked off the air. It was when Ron Brown’s plane went down. Grant said, “There’s an early report of one survivor. I assume that’s Ron Brown, because I’m a pessimist.”

Jesse Jackson called it a racist remark, and met with top ABC brass. I think that was when ABC was in another merger talk (maybe it was with Capitol Cities, maybe it was with Disney).

Not wanting trouble with the FCC during a merger talk, ABC fired Grant.

Now Grant was off the air in NYC, and elsewhere, for several years.

Some years later, Grant returned to WOR, a shadow of his former self. Quieter. A post-drive time slot. No longer a top draw.

Several years later, he retired from WOR. He said he wanted to quit.

Years later (less than a year ago?) he returned to WABC. He occupies a nighttime slot, not drive time.

That’s Bob Grant’s history, as best I recall from my 30+ years of listening to him, on and off.

He has not been “New York’s top talk radio host for over 30 years.” Grant was a top NYC radio host in the 1980s and the first half of the 1990s. But not for some time, and not now.