Root Makes Clear He Is Chair Candidate

by: AuGeo

Sun Feb 07, 2010 at 21:21:15 PM MST

A few weeks ago, CA Libertarian Party Judicial Committee Chair  (and LNC Chair candidate) Mark Hinkle circulated to some number of libertarians a formal statement on behalf of the Judicial Committee of the Libertarian Party of California.  The statement read:

"For Immediate Release:

On Tuesday, January 26, 2010, the Judicial Committee of the Libertarian Party of California issued a ruling that overturned the suspension of a member by a vote of 5-0.  While Robert's Rules of Order prevents the Judicial Committee from revealing the details of the proceedings, the Judicial Committee finds that it may comment on certain inaccurate information circulating about this case.  The suspension of the member by the Executive Committee was not for the commission of any crime, the Judicial Committee was not asked to render a decision that depended on the determination of whether or not the member had committed any crime, and the statements of the causes for suspension that were submitted to the Judicial Committee did not pertain to any such crime.

The Judicial Committee recognizes that the Executive Committee acted within the authority granted to it by the Party Bylaws to vote to suspend a member for a specific cause or causes.  The member also acted within the Bylaws by appealing the suspension to the Judicial Committee.  The Judicial Committee met the time lines delineated by the Bylaws and held an extensive hearing during which both parties had the opportunity to present their cases and call witnesses.  Following the hearing, the Judicial Committee carefully reviewed the statement of the causes, and the evidence and arguments, which had been submitted to it.  The Judicial Committee concluded that neither the Executive Committee nor the member presented their respective cases effectively.  The Executive Committee not having met the burden of proof on the causes as stated, and the Judicial Committee not being empowered nor inclined to extend or substitute for the stated causes, the Judicial Committee accordingly rendered a decision to overturn the suspension and restore the individual's membership as provided for under Section 6 of Bylaw 5.

Privacy considerations which are described in Robert's Rules of Order, as well as past precedents from membership suspensions by the Executive Committee, prevent the members of the Judiciary Committee from making any more specific comments with regard to this case.  Individual members of the Judicial Committee are of course always free (as is any member of the Party) to advocate for improvements in such things as declarations of Party membership requirements and the quality of administrative procedures, but such advocacy should not be assumed to reflect on the merits of this individual case.

The Judicial Committee has reviewed and affirmed its decision of Tuesday, January 26, 2010."

Wayne Root's response appears below the fold.

Poll: Vote for National Chair

by: AuGeo

Sat Feb 06, 2010 at 11:45:33 AM MST

Vote for any or all.

Liberty for All: In opposition to Floor Fees

by: AuGeo

Thu Feb 04, 2010 at 20:16:45 PM MST

We strongly oppose the imposition of a floor fee by the LNC for credentialing of national delegates. The By-laws and Convention Rules are quite clear in saying that delegates are chosen by the states and do not allow additional requirements to be added by the national party.

A floor fee will restrict the delegates' participation in party business, hindering their ability to carry out their responsibilities to the state parties.

Given that the anticipated revenue from the floor fee amounts to only one percent of the LNC's 2-year budget, it seems unreasonable that the LNC should be unable to earmark 1% of its annual budget to cover expenses for a required event.

If we allow the LNC to circumvent the By-laws and Convention Rules in this seemingly small regard, we may find it difficult to keep it from running roughshod over the By-laws in more controversial matters in the future.

The statement above has been endorsed by the following individuals:

George Phillies - candidate, LNC Chair
Carolyn Marbry - candidate, LNC Vice Chair
Rob Power - candidate, LNC Secretary
James Oaksun - candidate, LNC Treasurer

Mary Ruwart - candidate, At-Large
R. Lee Wrights - candidate, At-Large

Rachel Hawkridge - candidate, LNC Regional Representative
Michael Seebeck - candidate, LNC Regional Representative
Jake Porter - candidate, LNC Regional Representative
Scott Williamson - candidate, LNC Regional Representative
Charles Wilhoit - candidate, LNC Regional Alternate

Eva Kosinski - 2008 National Convention Team

Root Announces for Chair

by: AuGeo

Sun Jan 31, 2010 at 09:34:14 AM MST

The text of the letter reads:

This matter has been off my radar as I run multiple businesses, do hundreds of media interviews about Obama, Obamacare, and "state of the union", and run a family of 6. I try to stay out of LP affairs- especially on the state level. This was for California to handle. I just cannot get involved in every intra-party issue.

But now that these results are public, I may very well weigh in.

All I can say without knowing all the facts yet, is this is precisely why I'm going to run for National Chairman.

I'm sure you are well aware of how I felt about the opinions written in a book by a potential LP candidate for President in 2008. Those opinions on the topic of "age of consent" shocked and sickened me. I was the ONLY major LP figure that spoke out loudly.

This decisions sounds even worse.

I will look into it and do whatever I can to fight it, reverse it, and/or prevent it from ever happening again.

But the whole incident highlights the problems and disconnect from reality that have held this party back for 39 years... and why I'm running for National Chair- TO DRAMATICALLY CHANGE "business as usual."

"The incident" refers to a matter now covered on Independent Political Report

The Party and the Pendulum

by: Scott Williamson

Sat Jan 30, 2010 at 19:27:33 PM MST

A pendulum swinging back and forth never moves forward.  We can have a national committee full of self described "radicals" that refuse to let any "reformer" have input. The following convention the "reformers" can take over the national committee and shut out the "radicals". In the end we are back where we started.  We will never manage to move forward if part of the national committee spends its time trying to silence members who disagree with them. We will not survive if we continue to allow LNC subcommittees to hold meetings in which some members were excluded because other members disagreed with them.

The Libertarian National Committee needs to live up to the libertarian philosophy of personal liberty. We have to accept that our fellow libertarians will sometimes disagree with us.  We can only create a libertarian society when we spend less time as a party fighting over how we word our message and more time spreading our message.  

The party must stand firm on its principals of individual liberty and personal responsibility. With the Democrat pendulum swinging to the left and the Republican pendulum swinging to the right, some argue the Libertarian Party needs to rush into the void. By moving our party to the left or the right we are just creating another void "up". We cannot and should not compromise our philosophy to fill a void. Where would this leave our party when the Republican or Democrat pendulum swings back? Instead of moving into the void we should reach into the void. Through outreach and education we will bring those who are left politically homeless by their parties into the Libertarian Party.

We should never mistake the Libertarian National Committee for our Libertarian Party. Our party is not a committee of seventeen.  Our Libertarian Party is the people who run for office, donate money, and volunteer their time. The party is those who are activist working to change the world. Our Libertarian Party is us.

Our Libertarian National Committee needs to listen to our members, the people who elect the committee, to listen where they want their donations spent and on which path they want to go. Then our LNC should lead the way. Our National Committee should learn what our party actually needs from a national office and then find an economical way to meet our needs.  When we listen to activist on the front line and meet their needs we will move our party and our society into a bright future of freedom.

Scott Williamson is a candidate for LNC Regional Representative and can be contacted at scott.williamson01@comcast.net

James Oaksun: Where Did the Money Go?

by: AuGeo

Sat Jan 30, 2010 at 08:44:51 AM MST

The 2009 ballot question on gay marriage in Maine was the most expensive initiative campaign in Maine history, and the third most expensive statewide political campaign in the state's history. More than $7 million was spent on both sides. Only the U.S. Senate races of 2002 and 2008 were more costly.

This report will examine where the money got spent, on both the "Yes" (anti-equality) and "No" (pro-equality) sides. There were some significant differences in how the funds were allocated among different sources. Brief synopses will be provided on the major vendors on both sides. Finally, some suggestions for future equality campaigns will be offered. [More Below Fold]

Mary Ruwart: Minority Report of the DCC

by: Forwarder

Sat Jan 23, 2010 at 08:30:39 AM MST

Minority Report of the
Donor Confidentiality Committee

We now turn to Mary Ruwart's minority report to the Libertarian National Committee from the LNC ad hoc Donor Confidentiality Committee.  The report is a bit long, so a short summary is in order.  

Readers will recall that last Spring an effort was made to remove Lee Wrights from the National Committee, based on claims that he was not or had ceased to be a sustaining member of the National Party.  During the affaire, claims about Mr. Wrights membership status, in the form of a memo from Aaron Starr, appeared on IndependentPoliticalReport.com.  According to Ruwart's report, the memo made a number of claims about Wrights that have not been substantiated and that were damaging to Lee Wrights.  

At the Summer LNC Meeting, the LNC formed a Donor Confidentiality Committee to make recommendations to the LNC for protecting the good names of its donors.  Chairman Redpath appointed to the committee Mary Ruwart, and then Mark Hinkle, Stuart Flood, M Carling,...and Aaron Starr, whose memorandum was the proximate justification for forming the committee.

The conduct of the committee, as described in the Minority Report, may be characterized as 'interesting'.  Apparently Messrs. Carling and Starr wrote a 'final report', vetted by Mr. Flood, which they shared with Mr. Hinkle, but not with the  fifth Committee member, Dr. Ruwart.  There was allegedly a conference call to approve the report.  According to Ruwart, Starr demanded that Hinkle exclude Ruwart from the conference call, Ruwart writing:

"When I told Mr. Hinkle that I was available for the meeting, he told me that I could not participate because Mr. Starr had specifically asked that I be excluded until the document was "finalized." When I pointed out that he, as Committee Chair, could overrule Mr. Starr's request, Mr. Hinkle said he was unwilling to do so because he felt beholden to Mr. Starr for preparing the report. Although Mr. Hinkle did not appreciate being excluded from earlier meetings, he was quite willing to continue to exclude me."

And now, below the fold, the actual report:

Wilhoit Declares for Regional Representative Alternate

by: Scott Williamson

Sat Jan 16, 2010 at 16:52:54 PM MST

I am a Recruiter by nature as well as by reputation. I am proud to say that I recruited Scott Williamson as a candidate for LNC Regional Representative from Region Four. I promised Scott that I would do everything possible to help him achieve his goal, both in being elected in St. Louis and in doing what he promised in his candidate announcement. http://lpmndc.org/index.php?op...

I  decided to become a candidate to be a more active supporter for Scott. I choose to be in the Arena, not just the Cheering Section.

I share Scott's goal completely. I agree with everything he said in his candidacy announcement. We are independent of each other as candidates, yet we are a Team in spirit. If elected, we promise that one or both of us will attend every LNC meeting. I have no intention of being a mere "Stand By" Representative. I will be Scott Williamson's working partner.

Charles Wilhoit is a graduate of the U. S. Naval Academy and is a Captain, U. S. Navy (Retired). During his 29 years of active duty he commanded three ships, a Destroyer Squadron and one shore activity. Charles is past Chair of his county Libertarian Party, a past Chair of the Libertarian Party of Tennessee (LPTN) and currently serves as Chair of the LPTN Membership Committee. He was once a candidate for the Tennessee State Senate and for Governor of Tennessee.

To repeat Scott's own words: "I look forward to continually hearing your ideas and working with you to bring about a libertarian society. Together we can change the country. I ask for your support and look forward to meeting you in St. Louis, if not sooner."

Charles Wilhoit can be reached at: likelytn@aol.com.  Phone: 865-448-6493. USPS: P.O. Box 156, Townsend, TN 37882  

Williamson Declares for Regional Representative

by: Scott Williamson

Wed Jan 13, 2010 at 16:34:23 PM MST

Last month, I contacted State Party leaders and grass roots activist. I said I was listening. What did you want to tell me? You told me ballot access, outreach, local campaigns, and activist training were at the top of your agenda. I've heard your message.  I believe I can help set our party on the path that you asked for. I am excited to announce my candidacy for Regional Representative for the current region four.

Our National Committee's first responsibility is a fiduciary one. Committee members have a moral obligation to insure the party's money is spent wisely. It is not only how much money you spend, but what you are spending the money to do. As a Regional Representative I will seek to change where the LNC spends our money.  More of our money should be spent on the work of politics. A key issue is transparency, donors need to know where their money is spent.

You can lose an election and win a campaign. In many states we gain ballot access if a candidate wins a percentage of the state wide vote. If we spent money in these states on statewide campaigns we could gain ballot access in that state. This could lead to spending less on ballot access in Presidential election years and free up more money for campaigns and for ballot access in those states where it is the hardest to gain ballot access.

As your regional representative I will continue listen to what you have to say. By keeping in regular contact with state and local leaders and sharing your good work with the party as a whole, I will facilitate communications between the states in our region, so you can adopt what is working from other states and avoid things that are not working.  

The hard work of politics is done by those who volunteer their time and money. It is you the local activist who spreads the message of individual freedom and personal responsibility. It is you the local activist who digs deep into your own pockets to support candidates and issues. Our National committee should be helping you more. The National Committee should provide online, free, usable brochures, web page templates for our candidates, and training for people who want to run for office or campaign for an issue.

As we continue to reach out to those at tax revolts, antiwar rallies, gun festivals, and audit the Fed groups we will expand our party membership. We need to harness the talent and experience we already have in our party and offer training to those who wish to join us in our fight for freedom.

These are just a few ideas that will set us on the paths you advocated in your letters and phone calls last month. I am excited about the future of our party and have the energy to help lead the way. I look forward to continually hearing your ideas and working with you to bring about a libertarian society. Together we can change the country. I ask for your support and look forward to meeting you in Saint Louis, if not sooner.

The current Region 4 includes Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas. Scott Williamson is currently the S.T.A.R Representative of Outright Libertarians USA, Chair of Outright Libertarians Nashville and the Secretary for the Libertarian Party of Nashville and Davidson County. He is often a guest on Queer Talk Radio and Out and About TV political round table where he promotes the libertarian philosophy to the GLBT community. Scott holds a degree in Political Science and resides in Nashville, TN with his partner Brian Rhinehart.  Scott Williamson can be contacted at scott.williamson01@comcast.net

How We Get There

by: Forwarder

Wed Jan 06, 2010 at 21:56:34 PM MST

We start moving in the right direction by putting our Libertarian party on the New Path, the path to Libertarian Renewal.

Just imagine if every election campaign included a Libertarian candidate.  Just imagine if we were the majority party. Just imagine if our sound social and financial policies restored true American greatness, the greatness of being the country that offers its people more freedom and more prosperity than any where else.  Just imagine if our wise foreign and domestic policies made America once again that shining city on the sunlit hill, the country whose very existence signifies peace, liberty, and opportunity.

That's wonderful to imagine.  How do we get there?

Every journey begins with a first step.  The journey may be long.  Some of us may not live to reach our destination.  But if we do not take the first steps on our journey, none of us will ever reach it.  

Seebeck Announces for California Regional Representative

by: Forwarder

Thu Jan 07, 2010 at 05:35:02 AM MST

http://www.facebook.com/group....

http://www.facebook.com/notes/...

Fellow Californians,

After a lot of consulting, consideration, and discussion with both family and colleagues within the Party, I am announcing my candidacy for LNC Regional Representative for Region 2, serving California.

These past two years have seen the LNC in turmoil and the LPCA in growth, and the next 3 years are OUR time.  It is time to restore strong and principled leadership to the LNC and to continue that growth in California.  As the largest state affiliate and the only single-state region, California's role on the LNC is unique.  We've seen their turmoil and its impacts on our state, and it is past time to end it and move forward with doing the jobs we have pledged our time, our money, our sweat, our tears, and even our blood-using the political process to advocate, create, and move towards a libertarian society.  Great progress has been made, but it is time to build on that and grow nationally, and to continue our growth in California.  THIS IS OUR TIME!  We need to make the most of it.  Voters are angry, and we MUST tap into that for our success, at all levels.

Phillies Announces for National Chair

by: Forwarder

Mon Dec 21, 2009 at 20:09:48 PM MST

Our Libertarian Party stands at its golden moment.  American voters are disgusted with their major parties, the parties of perpetual war, perpetual crony bailouts, and perpetual expansion of our national debt.  They know Washington politicians don't care what their constituents think.

The people of America crave an alternative. That's us.  That's our Libertarian Party, the Party of Common Sense.

Our opportunities stand right before us.

All we need to do is to reach out and take them.

We need to show America we are the Party of Good Sense.  We do that by running on issues that people care about, issues like Peace, Opportunity, and Liberty.

*Peace?  End the Asian Land Wars.  Bring our troops home to their families.

*Opportunity?  End Washington fiscal profligacy.  Stop bailing out the crooked cronies of a corrupt Congress.

*Liberty?  Shut down the warfare surveillance state.

That's our Common Sense Libertarian message.

Yes, we're Libertarians. We thrive on civil disagreement. We need a National Committee ready and able to fight our real opponents.

Some Libertarians ask: Do we really need 50-state ballot access?  I say: My goal is thriving Libertarian Parties for every state, D.C., Puerto Rico, Guam, and everywhere else our flag flies.

Some Libertarians talk about fund raising.  I say: Talk about fund spending!  Spend our money on public outreach. Spend our money on local organization.  ABOVE ALL, spend our money to elect candidates.  Spend our money effectively, and our donors will reward us ten-fold.

Some Libertarians talk about purity tests.  I say: Leave purity tests to high school students.  Elect an LNC that wants to do work.

Some Libertarians fear a takeover.  I say: We need a make-over. Bring small-L libertarians into our party. Embrace the anti-war coalitions that Republicans and Democrats hate. Greet the GLBTQ activists Obama and McCain scorn. Welcome women's rights supporters double-crossed by Congressional liberals.

Some Libertarians mobilize for platform debates.  I say: Yes, Mobilize the Libertarians.  Mobilize our fellow Libertarians to do real politics.

How do we do that?  We need a national party leadership with a vision for the future.  We need a national party leadership with sensible plans.  We need a national party leadership with fire in its belly.  We need a national party leadership willing to work for our party.

I'm delighted to see that across America good Libertarians are announcing their intent to run for our National Committee. They share a glorious objective: Put our Libertarian party on the New Path, the path to Libertarian Renaissance.

Last week, Angela Keaton used the pages of Liberty For All to urge me to run for National Chair.  This week, Eva Kosinski used Gold America Group to do the same. Since then, I've been deluged with words of encouragement.

Let me paraphrase a distinguished foreign leader, many of whose fellow nationals and their descendants are now fine Americans:  My life is but a feather.  My duty to my party is a crushing mountain. Mindful of the words of my fellow libertarians, I find I have no alternative: I must shoulder this burden.

I hereby announce that I am a candidate for National Chair of our Party.

The Culture of Dependence

by: all4thinking

Sat Dec 19, 2009 at 09:50:02 AM MST

The legislation is done for the wrong reasons in the first place (to get votes -- no principles here), and the destructive tendencies of dependent thinking are starting to show up everywhere in the culture. People begin to believe that they can't handle life on their own.  40 year-olds are still living in their parents' basements.  The drug war has put people who made one mistake in jail, ruining their potential careers and corrupting a generation of law enforcement who get to keep the spoils of their raids.  Employment laws have made employees so expensive, business cannot hire as many as they need to run effectively, removing job opportunities for the young, reducing the ability to compete in the marketplace, and shutting out those willing to take less just to work, gain self-esteem and earn good references for future more-well-paying jobs.

The kind of important strike-out-on-your-own-and-make-good spirit is rapidly disappearing, and job applicants either subject themselves to random drug testing, surveillance and a host of other indignities without protest, or they give up in disgust and fall back on social programs, which are only slightly less demeaning, but keep food on the table.

Companies are unwilling to take the losses incurred by their own bad decisions, and by overly zealous regulation, and as long as they can get someone else to pay the cost (the rest of us end up paying, through government "bailouts") they are not facing the real challenges in the world marketplace, and are falling ever further behind, while they wait for their campaign donations and lobbyists to buy them more favors from the powers that be.  They too are dependent, because they can no longer rely on their own cranial and fiscal resources to do the outside-the-box thinking that will make them successful on their own.

Individuals and small start-up companies who do wish to make something of themselves face a barrage of paperwork and rules, many of which are there primarily to raise funds for local governments, but many Americans aren't willing to get rid of them because they've become convinced, in their dependency, that licensing (however poorly enforced) is there to protect them, and in fact, have come to believe that, contrary to all evidence that enforcement is spotty and ineffective, every facet of their well being can, and should, be similarly "protected" by the government.

This is the logic, if one could call it that, that leads people to insist that the government control guns, monitor their children in school, and "help" those who no longer have the will to fight for their own future.  Consequently, more and more folks in our country have begun to feel helpless to control their own destinies, because the degree of government control has become so large, they don't know where to begin to get their freedom back.

They can begin with the Libertarian Party, but they should do so with a Libertarian Party that is not trying to be just another version of either of the two major parties.  Start with a Libertarian Party that is more interested in focusing on individual freedom and responsibility, that will help to open pathways to economic freedom and the self esteem and material success which comes from self-reliance.  Elected Libertarians will start to undo the mess that the major parties have left us with.

The principles that made America the economic engine it's been in the past have been all but destroyed by the two major parties, while they vie for party base and try to buy voters with costly and inefficient programs "for the common good." A Libertarian Party that copies their methods, or supports any of their candidates, even "little l" candidates, will not get American where it needs to go: back to the core of Liberty that gave her prosperity and freedom.  Only the Libertarian Party, and only a Libertarian Party with principles at its core, can do that. 

The issue of dependence is becoming a greater and greater problem, as the dependents begin to outnumber those paying the taxes for the programs, and as the sure-to-come cuts begin, voters will see that they've been duped.  The Libertarian Party needs to be there, ready with answers based on sound principle, not media hype, or sound bites or quick and dirty fixes that we can't pay for and that can't last.  We need to remind America of that path that made our country great, and nip, in the bud, the belief that Americans are too weak, silly, naive, self-centered, greedy, or criminal, to run their own lives responsibly without inefficient government oversight.

To do that, Libertarian leadership has to change.  Our credibility has been damaged by the "me-too" policies of the current LNC, but it's not too late to turn that around.  As the current US administration proves to the populace that promises are not enough, the time is ripe for solid, principled, Libertarian leadership, not copy-cat solutions. Money needs to be spent in support of affiliates and candidates, not pricy offices in cities where the big parties can keep a close eye on our staff, on long-term outreach to Libertarians and non-Libs alike, not media consultants and other tech-based panaceas that cost a fortune with little real result. Many Libertarians believe that the LNC has morphed into an organization that sees itself more as ruler than servant, only there to ask us for money, not to help us at the local or state level, and to tell us what to do. Top-down thinking is the hallmark of the two major parties; reality tells us it doesn't work.  We need something better.

My vote goes to George Phillies, who's been carrying the standard for Libertarian principles for many years.  He's organized, he's got supporters in every state, he's interested in helping affiliates grow and succeed, and has the training materials to prove it.  Rather than just talk about ballot access, he's created a 527 organization to help attain it in every state.  He's not a follow-the-leader kind of leader, and he's fought back against the trend to make the Libertarian Party just another big party looking to win, no matter which principles have to be abandoned.  He cares about the affiliates' success and he listens to what they need to make their outreach better.

People are sick of spin, sick of politicians who end up in jail or on YouTube with bimbos; they want to be represented by people who think things through, and are not representing any interests but those laid out by the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, who are looking to get government out of everyone's life, so they can build a real future.  We have a good reputation, even among the big-party faithful, because they see Libertarianism as a more honest approach, one that does not attract the power-hungry.  We can work from that, but only if we don't water down what we stand for.

Electing George Phillies to Chair the LNC is the best path we can take to getting the Libertarian Party positioned to gain strength when the American populace has finally had enough.

Why Gold?

by: AuGeo

Sat Dec 19, 2009 at 07:28:09 AM MST

Democrats are Blue, Republicans are Red, and what color should the networks show when we sweep all 50 states?  See above for our answer.  Patriots will immediately think Red, White and Blue, but red and blue are taken, and white is the color before a state is called for any party. Green is legitimately claimed by the Green Parties.

What colors remain? Orange? Lemon? Violet? Purple?

Certainly, metallic gold would have been wonderful -- Libertarians, the Gold Standard of political excellence -- but metallics display poorly on-screen.  There is a PurpleMassGroup.com, but they wisely fled from the thought of an all-purple web site.  After some search, we found a reasonable alternative.

If you are curious, the color is actually Goldenrod (#DAA520), chosen to be near gold but not blinding lemon yellow.  

Rob Power Announces Candidacy for LNC Secretary

by: Forwarder

Fri Dec 04, 2009 at 20:13:15 PM MST

"The time is right for us Libertarians to adopt a new strategy," Mr. Power said. "Our Party is unique in its longstanding rejection of perpetual war, central planning, and government favoring    certain classes of individuals over others.  After nearly a decade of war for which most Americans now realize there was never any national security interest, and years into a recession prolonged by federal government policies, voters have caught up to the Libertarian Party's longtime understanding about the nature of big government.  Even those who have long shared our skepticism of Washington DC's ability to solve society's problems have recently come to the realization that their former 'allies' - the religious right - cannot be trusted to oppose the growth of government, especially when their operatives are elected to office.  If our message of individual liberty and personal responsibility is to gain any traction in these key demographics who are most open to our recruitment, the Libertarian Party must have a new generation of leadership, rejecting social conservatism and reaching out in their own terms to those voters who may have lost their faith in big government only very recently."

"We've heard that several internal problems, with our Platform, our Bylaws, or certain interest groups, have been what's holding our Party back.  Thus, great internal effort has been expended to gut our platform, centralize executive power in our Bylaws, and purge certain longtime constituents from our Party.  It didn't help us at all.  Our true obstacles are a lack of ballot access, indifference or even hostility from the mainstream media, caricatures of Libertarians and our principles - often by those within our Party - and a focus on making our Party look more and more like the less successful of the two major parties.  Nothing about the obstacles we face has changed in four decades.  These are old problems, and it's long past time for new solutions. We must stop scapegoating our own Platform, Bylaws, and respected Party Founders, and instead realize that the opposition is outside, not inside, by implementing new technologies and new ideas to bypass media and ballot access roadblocks and recruit new members and activists.  We also must learn that donors like to know where their money is going, and reliance on blind generosity is an unwise strategy for fundraising.  Finally, we must 'walk the talk' and actively campaign to stop and reverse the trend of increasing obstacles to ballot access."