Here's a report from Trevor Southerland on the recent Libertarian National Committee meeting at which the committee voted to abolish national dues, and my brief response. I'm very much looking forward to Sean Haugh's report, because his insights have been particularly illuminating in the past.
Yours in liberty,
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I have written this report on the LNC meeting, showing some of the events that happened and my personal feelings on them. It is attached and included below for anybody who would care to read it.
This was a positive meeting and I come out of it feeling good about the future of our party. Feel free to distribute this to anyone who would care to read it, and if you don't care to read it, simply use the "delete" feature on your e-mail.
I should also remind you that I am not an English major, attended high school in Northern Georgia and college in Tennessee... so please... have mercy on my writing skills.
- Trevor M. Southerland
--------------------------------------------Report on the meeting of the Libertarian National Committee
August 6-7, 2005 in Kansas City
Trevor M. Southerland, Region 4 Alt. Representative(This report does not include reference to every single debate or vote held at the LNC meeting and is my personal summary of what happened. For more information, I suggest you look to the official minutes or to Sean Haugh for his report, which will be published on www.libertyforall.net)
For those of you who watch movies often, you?ll be familiar with the phrase ?A funny thing happened on the way to the office today...?
Well, a funny thing happen at the LNC meeting this weekend... although I?m not about to talk about what you think I am. I came away from this meeting with a renewed spirit of confidence in our Libertarian Party. But that?s not the funny thing, either...
At one point during this meeting there was a request to vote by roll call and I supported it. As I looked at my hand raised in the air I noticed that I was voting for this with two other people who I never thought I?d see myself voting with. I later came to find out that despite rumors, they are indeed human... and pretty nice guys at that. After all, I had heard so many different things about some members of the LNC but what I found out is that every single person in that room was doing what they genuinely felt was best for the future of our Libertarian Party. The people I knew, the people I just met, they were all doing what they felt was best to ensure that our party is continued for generations to come. Granted, I reserve the right to disagree with some of these people from time to time, and I?m sure they?d all reserve the right to occasionally disagree with me. As I looked around that room, there was no evil, there was no hatred. There was only a sense of doing what they thought was right.
In that room there was no ?purist? or ?reformer? ? there were only ?Libertarians.? That was the thing which struck me the most... there was no huge division in the room like I thought there would be... there wasn?t one side voting for this and one side voting for that. All there was were good hearted men and women, who only want the best for their party. After events taken by the LNC this weekend, it appear to me that it would be best if we all dropped our labels of ?purist? ? ?reformer? ? ?hardliner? ? etc... we?re all Libertarians, and that should be a good enough description, I?m a Libertarian.
Just as a thought... something that I overheard this weekend could be asked of all of us is ?what possible benefit will the party get from what I?m about to do?? You could ask this before sending a wild and fired up e-mail... or as it was described in this sense, a phone call. When you?re speaking to or somewhere that non-Libertarians are listening... is what you?re about to do going to have a positive impact on our party?
The Executive Committee resolution from June which froze extra spending and salary increases at national was lifted by the LNC without opposition. The staff has completed 2 of 3 tasks that the Executive Committee asked for, and the 3rd task is expected to be completed in the next couple of weeks. Shane Cory and Sam New were the office staff at the meeting; these are two fine gentlemen that I?m proud to say work for the LP. For any of you who haven?t met our office staff, I recommend you stop by DC sometime and see the hard work they are doing to advance the cause of Liberty.
The APRC (Advertising and Publications Review Committee) was reinstated, although in a slightly different format, from a proposal from Jim Lark. The committee shall be made up of Lee Wrights, Mark Nelson and Jim Lark. Due to timely information out of national, some items will be subject to review after publication, while other reviews will happen before publication. The LNC made it clear to this committee that its actions must be quick so that it does not hinder the effectiveness of our staff.
The LNC voted to instruct staff to no longer accept checks from non-FEC committee state parties. Personally I voted against this measure simply because I think at some point the LNC needs to stand up and say ?screw BCRA.? But for those of you who are aware, this was simply done to make sure the LP is in compliance with FEC and BCRA regulations.
The LNC voted also to outsource material sales and LP News. This was done again to make sure that the party is in compliance with regulations. The Chair did say that Daniel Cloud had been aware that this might be a possibility, and that he would likely continue being the Editor of LP News, only doing it as an outsourced job instead of as a member of national staff. This goes into effect on September > 19th.
On the Iraq Exit Strategy, it was only spoken of briefly... and I feel confident in saying that the super majority of the room supported it. The main point that was made about the reason this report was issued is that there is nobody speaking out for those who are against the war. Those people have no political home, and this is an opportunity for us to welcome them into our political home... and we need to reach out to do that.
Dr. Jim Lark gave a report on the state of campus organizing and what has been happening in that area. I would like to personally recommend that any state that does not have a Campus Coordinator (either as a member of your Executive Committees or simply as an appointed office) you should do that soon. It is essential that the Libertarian Party take its place at college campuses across the nation.
Bill Redpath gave a report of what Ballot Access requirements could be met this year and how the situation is looking for 2008. I believe it is time that we make ballot access a core function of this party. It is one of the most important things that we do. It should have a member of national staff specifically just for ballot access, but instead it is a volunteer who puts in countless hours working to make sure we qualify for state ballots. One of the members of the committee was asking about if a Presidential candidate was more important then running local candidates. My answer is that we need to do both! It is crucial that we run a Presidential candidate; it simply gains us a lot of publicity that we?d otherwise never get. In Hamilton County, Tennessee, the election of two nearby local office holders got the LP some publicity in the newspaper and radio. However; when a Libertarian Presidential candidate comes to town... they get huge coverage! Early on in the campaign we had Gary Nolan on talk radio for 2 hours in the morning, and Aaron Russo on for 3 hours in the afternoon. It was the day that the Libertarians took over the airwaves. When Michael Badnarik returned after winning the nomination he was covered by 4 television states, the radio stations and the newspapers. It gained huge publicity for the party and likely gained us around 10 new members just from publicity alone.
Work is still being done on the platform. For those of you who?d like to observe, go to www.lpconvention.org/platform. The platform was changed in Atlanta to make it easier to read and more clear. There are still changes which need to happen in Portland and I?m confident the convention will approve the necessary changes.
Ah, the 0-dues resolution... how you thought I was going to manage to write this report without brining it up. I support the concept of 0-dues, however; I did not think that it was right at this time and that is why I voted against the elimination of UMP and going to 0-dues. I thought that it was not the best time for the national party... and when I look at the states in the region I represent, I see 3 or 4 which now are going to have to work hard to replace their revenue streams. I hope that during this time of transition, the larger states will help the smaller states learn and grow. Many states do not have pledge programs and need to develop them. I hope that the larger states will make their expertise available in these fields. The main thing is that it happened. All votes or opinions aside it has happened and now we must work hard to assure the party gets proper support.
I think we must also remember that we still have to support all 5 levels of the party now. Yes, I said 5. We must continue to support national, I do so by being a pledger and think everyone should. The existence of a national party is crucial. If anyone thinks opposite of that they need to look at other 3rd parties which said they could survive without a national presence... they are now all but history. Our state affiliates are now going to have cash flow problems, so we need to make sure to continue to support our states. I recommend that every state begin a pledge program to help estimate their annual income. Of course, we have to support the local level of the party... our grassroots efforts to elect local officials is one of our most important tasks. The 4th thing we must support is our candidates, specifically I make mention of the Badnarik Campaign for Congress. Michael has, in my opinion, a great shot of being the second elected libertarian to Congress, and also the first elected Libertarian to Congress. I hope that we can give him the support he needs. Finally we must remember LP News, which will now be done on a subscription basis. I have always enjoyed LP News, and feel that it is an essential thing which must be supported... and I hope all of you choose to support the LP News as it enters a new phase of existence.
The LNC took a huge step with the 0-dues proposal. I voted that way because I felt it was the best thing not only for my region but for the party in general. Now however; that is said and done and this is what we have. There will be growing pains but again, as long as we are dedicated to the future of this party then we will be successful. Now it is time for us to step up and support the party on all levels... it?s time to become a political force.
The LNC voted to form a Finance Committee for help with fundraising ideas, making Mark Rutherford the Chair. This committee will be aimed at working to help replace revenue streams now that dues are abolished. It was shocking to me that 5 people voted against this motion... personally, I think we should always support a committee aimed at helping to find new revenue possibilities for the party and I have confidence in Mark Rutherford?s ability to lead this committee.
The question has been asked ?couldn?t this whole 0-dues thing go away in November?? Yes, that is correct. The same LNC which 6 months ago doubled dues, and now has eliminated dues, could turn itself around once more. Personally, I think if the membership shows their approval of this 0-dues policy by contributing to the party then there will be no issue. However; if finances fall and there is not support shown; I would bet there might be a motion to reinstate dues. Personally I don?t want to see that happen, I want to see us, the members, support our party the way we should. We have to plan for today and not live in tomorrow... that is our main goal at this point.
Again, I remind you of 5 things to do today to support this party:
1) Become a pledger to the national party!
2) Become a pledger to your state party, or start a pledge program!
3) Help contribute to grassroots and local efforts in your area!
4) Support our candidates!
5) Remember to subscribe to LP News.The National Convention in 2006 is currently being planned. The convention is the first weekend in July (also the last week in June for the Platform Committee, etc...) It is structured where candidates can return home in time for July 4th parades. Jim Lark has been working with the Oregon party to structure volunteers, Mark Nelson has been working with the Neale family who organized the 2004 convention, and Mike Dixon is talking to convention planners about having a professional for our 2006 convention. Nancy Neale did a fabulous job in 2004, but there doesn?t appear to be anyone with the committee this year that could live up to her results.
The LNC voted by voice vote to urge the By-Laws Committee to support a resolution to call for the repeal of Article VI of the By-Laws, which authorizes a Party Program.
The committee looking at applicants to become our new Executive Direction is Admiral Colley, Bette Rose Ryan, and Rick McGinnis. Anybody who has input for them, you?re welcome to e-mail them. Shane Cory, our Director of Communications, will be serving as the ?office manager? at national until such time as a new Executive Director is hired.
National is currently out of the ?New Vision for America? brochures but is exploring avenues to get new brochures printed.
The national staff will be moving offices soon, going from Suite 100 to Suite 200. It is in the same building and at a nice price. National staff are ready to make the move as soon as the ink is dry.
Michael Badnarik announced he will be running for the 10th Congressional District in Texas. He will be in a three way race, with a one term Republican Congressman. To contribute to help his effort, his web site is being revamped, www.badnarik.org.
The State Chair?s Convention (LSLA) will be held January 28-29, 2006 in Phoenix, Arizona. This is a good training experience for leaders of the state level, and I would recommend attendance.
The next meeting of the Libertarian National Committee will be November 12-13 in Baltimore, Maryland. The meeting will be at the Embassy Suites near BWI Airport. I recommend anybody in the area to come on over and watch the LNC in action.
As a special note to the Chairs in Region 4... I did get Chairman Dixon to promise me that he would double the salaries for state chairs. So I congratulate you on your accomplishment, but I still feel that you are underpaid and appreciate your dedication.
This is a very important time in the history of the Libertarian Party and I am proud to be able to play a part in it. I am confident in the survival and success of our party, I am proud of what we have accomplished... and I look forward with great anticipation to a day when the Libertarian Party is truly a political force in America.
Trevor M. Southerland
Region 4 Alt. Representative
Libertarian National Committee
TrevSoutherland@...Submitted: August 8, 2005
Trevor,
Thanks for the detailed report. And thanks for voting against "zero dues." First the LNC votes to double national dues, then eliminates them entirely. This makes no sense on the face of it. I hope it isn't a backdoor attempt to get rid of the party's pledge. Why can't we just keep dues at a reasonable level? Now I'll bet we're all going to be inundated with fundraising letters and a bunch of rhetoric about the importance of donors. I'm not at all happy with this move.
I'm also curious about your statement that several states in your region will be having to replace their revenue streams. I just got an email from the California State Secretary stating in part "all LP members in California should immediately cease sending dues for membership renewals to the national LP!!! Instead, send all membership renewals (at $25 per year) to the Libertarian Party of California state headquarters." It sounds like the states could easily be better off financially than they are now.
Do you recall more specifically what was said about the "Iraq Exit Strategy?" Was it mentioned that the strategy is a violation of the party's platform? I encourage anyone who feels, as I do, that national staff should not be unilaterally proposing plans which contradict the platform voted on by our membership, to sign the petition against the IES here:
http://www.petitiononline.com/mod_perl/signed.cgi?NIXIES
Yours in liberty,
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