Document:LP News 1972 November Issue 11
HOSPERS VOTE PROJECTED AT 5,000+
With official, final figures still unavailable, due to the lethargic nature of government election officials and the low priority given to write-in votes, we are unable to report with certainty the actual number of votes that will officially be reported as having been cast for the Hospers-Nathan ticket. All available evidence indicates that the final total will be in excess of 5,000 however, which means that the real total is probably in excess of 10,000, as write-in votes are not even tallied in many states.
As expected, the LP ticket did the best in the two states where Hospers and Nathan were listed on the ballot. In Washington, the State Election Commission has stated that the H-N ticket pulled about 1,400 votes; all returns except absentee ballots are included in this figure. In Colorado, final and complete returns give the LP ticket 1,108 votes. In each of the two states, the Hospers-Nathan vote works out to slightly better than one vote out of every 1,000 cast, which is not bad, in view of the fact that LP membership in each state was less than 75 as of Election Day.
In California, where there was a write-in effort, returns are available only from Los Angeles County, where the LP ticket drew over 300 votes. California LP lea ers are confident that the statewide total will be near or above their goal of 1,000 votes.
Starting from a three-state total ih the area of 3,500 votes, we can add 50 votes from Utah, 150 from Texas, and 95 from three precincts in Anchorage, Alaska (Alaska total will no doubt be considerably higher). Reports from other states where an organized write-in effort was conducted are not yet available; it seems reasonable to assume that at least another 1,200 votes were cast for Hospers and Nathan in the 44 other states, thus bringing the nationwide total to at least 5,000. Actually, this is a conservative estimate; the reported total may be in excess of 7,000, and might even be 10,000, although we doubt it. We hope to get final, complete figures from Congressional Quarterly, which tallies these figures, by early next spring.
The raw figures are not of as much interest as some of the data that can be gleaned from them, however.
First, and perhaps of most immediate inter est, is the fact that the LP did better, in terms of votes, than several other, better-known and more experienced minority parties, in the two states where all significant minority parties were on the ballot (Washington and Colorado).
In Washington, there were a total of eight parties on the ballot -- the two major parties, us, the American Party, the Communist Party, the Peoples Party, the Socialist Labor Party, and the Socialist Workers Party. In Colorado, the Prohibition Party was also on the ballot, bringing the total to nine.
In Washington, we ran third of the six smaller parties -- behind the American and Peoples Parties, but ahead of the Communists and the two Socialist Parties. In Colorado, we ran fourth out of seven -- behind the American, Peoples and Socialist Labor Parties, ahead of the SWP, CP, and Prohibition Party.
This indicates that given an opportunity to reach the voters, we can do at least as well as other minority parties. In other words, we a viable minority party (and, indeed, have been recognized as such by virtually every political analyst who has commented on minority party activity this year).
This data also inaicates that if we can get on the ballot, we can draw about 20 votes for every party member we have in a given state. Thus, if we can increase our membership to 32,000 by 1976 (a conservative estimate; see article elsewhere in this issue), and can get the election laws revised to eliminate discrimination against minority parties, we can pull 640,000 votes in 1976 -- which could easily make us the most significant minority party in America, in terms of numbers (we're already the most significant, in terms of ideas). A good goal, it seems to your editor, is a cool million votes in in '76.
Another way of looking at the data from the '72 election is to see how our candidates for state and local office performed.
In Colorado, we were able to get two LP candidates on the ballot -- Pipp Boyls for Congress, and Hue Futch for State Legislature. Both Pipp and Hue pulled about 1½% of the vote, in their respective races {2,000 votes out of 150,000 and 240 out of 16,000 respectively), even though both ran with practically no money, and very few campaign workers {Hue had about $120, and six workers; Pipp had about $1,000 and about 20 workers). These figures indicate that even with limited resources, we can draw 1½% of the vote, which would work out to 1.2 million votes, nationwide in an election where 80 million votes are cast. And we should have about as many members in each Congressional District, on the average, throughout the nation in '76 as we had in Pipp's District this year.
A third statistic of interest. In the states where Hospers and Nathan were on the ballot, our cost per vote received was about 50¢ - as compared to about $1 per vote for Nixon, McGovern and Schmitz. And minority parties usually get less votes per dollar spent than the major parties! This 50¢ per vote figure also held true for Pipp Boyls and Hue Futch.
All these figures indicate that if we can get members, money, and ballot listing, the LP has a great future in store. Whether this future potential is realized is up to you.
SYMMS WINS IN IDAHO
Steve Symms, a libertarian running for Congress as a Republican in the First District of Idaho, pulled off an unexpected miracle, and won.
Steve, an unabashed libertarian, didn't even expect to make it past the primary, but won an upset victory in a three-way race, and then went on to win by a handy margin {about 55% to 45%) in the general election.
Ralph Smead, the man who was behind Steve's entry into the race, attended the LP ExecComm meeting in Albuquerque, and said that Steve appreciated the endorsement LP had given him, and hoped to co-operate with us in the future. Ralph also showed films of Steve's TV spots, which were a refreshing change from the usual BS. In one, Steve urged citizens to "take a bite out of government," illustrating his point by biting into an apple )Steve is an apple grower). In another, he asked why U.S. citizens are not allowed to own gold, and in yet another, he pointed out the dangers of gun-control laws, and urged their repeal. And in practically every spot, he stated that "the issue is freedom," and called for "Less Government."
Steve took many stands directly from the LP National Platform, and used an adaptation of our arrow-and-TANSTAAFL emblem on much of his literature.
We congratulate Steve on his victory, and look forward to seeing a Congressman stand up for liberty in the House of Reprehensibles.
(A note of interest on the Symms race. Idaho is probably the most libertarian state in the country, and thus is probably the only state where a libertarian could capture a GOP nomination. Idaho gave John Schmitz 9% of its Presidential vote; the highest percentage he drew in any state.)
IN OTHER RACES...
Elsewhere, libertarians did not fare as well. In Massachusetts, Avi Nelson failed, by a narrow margin to capture the GOP nomination for Congress in the Third District. This is no doubt partly due to the fact that (in contrast to Idaho) Massachusetts is probably the most "liberal" (i.e. collectivist) state in the country. Nelson, however, tried to downplay his libertarianism, running as a 100% Nixon man; it didn’t help, and he lost anyhow -- which perhaps serves him right, for abandoning his principles.
In New York, Guy Riggs was unable to get on the ballot in his attempt to run for the State Assembly. He assures us that he'll be back again, however.
Also in New York, Gary Greenberg and Walter Block were ruled off the ballot, even though they both had far more than the necessary number of signatures. Apparently, the Democratic incumbent in Gary’s Congressional District was getting scared; according to the NY LP, he and his cronies spent over $10,000 to get Gary and Walter disqualified
Similarly, in Illinois, the Democratic incumbent challenged Paul Stout’s petitions, and managed to tie up the court hearing until after the ballots had been printed, without Paul's name on them.
Despite these actions, both Gary and Walter in New York and Paul in Illinois continued to distribute literature; although their constituents were denied the right to vote Libertarian, they did get to hear some libertarian ideas.
No data is available on the efforts waged by Manny Klausner in California, Pasquale Giordano in Georgia, and David Odden in Washington. From what we have heard, none of them received more than a handful of votes (only Odden was on the ballot), but all of them did a great job of disseminating libertarian ideas.
IMPORTANT NOTICE
In accordance with the decision reached by the National ExComm in Albuquerque, the LP Newsletter will be published on a bi-monthly, rather than monthly schedule during 1973.
LP Members who are receiving the Newsletter as part of their membership will receive issues until the expiration of their current membership Those who subscribe as non-members will have their subscriptions extended so that they will receive their full twelve issues. New subs will receive only six issues for their $2.
The LP Newsletter is published by the National Office of the Libertarian Party. Items of interest to LP members are welcome. David F. Nolan, Editor.
Base Circulation This Issue: 931 Copies.
POLITICAL PERSPECTIVE
VIII. FOUR MORE YEARS
To nobody’s surprise, Richard the Lyin' Hearted swept to a landslide victory over George McGrovel; the only aspect of his triumph that was in any way amazing was its sheer magnitude. Six months ago, even the most pro-Nixon estimates gave McGovern more states and a higher percentage of the vote than he actually got.
Indeed, McGovern lost so badly that one is tempted to agree with those who claim that the match was fixed from the start; that McGovern was trying to lose. Certainly, he managed to do just about everything that he could to assure his own defeat, from taking stands calculated to drive even the most rabidly anti-Nixon conservatives back into the Nixon camp, to dumping his Vice Presidential candidate in the manner that would most effectively undermine his own integrity and credibility.
But, whether McGovern blew it deliberately, or simply through his own ineptitude, the net result is that Nixon not only won, but won by such a margin that he now has a mandate to do whatever he (or those who control him, if there be such) may choose.
What course he will follow we cannot say; his first remarks following his victory contained some anti-bureaucratic rhetoric, but we don't place much faith in Nixon's rhetoric. Our guess is that the second four years of Nixon will be much like the first four. Increasing commitment to international involvements, more inflation, more controls, and, perhaps, an economic crash.
In any event, the picture that is already shaping up for '76 is not a pretty one. Assuming that he will accept it, Teddy Kennedy has the Democratic nomination in his pocket. On the Republican side, we can expect to see Spiro Agnew making his bid, although not without competition from such perennial favorites as Rockefeller and Reagan, along with a "liberal" Senator or two (e.g. Percy and Taft), and perhaps a couple of phony conservatives (e.g. Brock, Dole and Gurney).
So, when the dust clears, we will probably face a choice between Kennedy and some Nixon surrogate. And, given the fact that things will probably be in even more of a mess than they are now, plus the fact that Teddy Bear has "charisma," we can expect the American voters to run to EMK in '76 just as they ran to FDR in '32. And the thought of a Teddy Kennedy administration is enough to scare even your normally imperturbable editor.
So where does this leave us? As I see it, we have two options. One is to do the Ayn Rand trick, and throw our support to the GOP candidate, in hopes of stopping Teddy. The other is to immediately begin a massive educational effort to make the American people realize that the current Administration's policies — particularly in the economic sphere — are leading us toward disaster, and that the only hope for improvement lies in a reversal, rather than an amplification, of those policies.
The former course would be a great error, as I see it, for two reasons. First, because it probably wouldn't work, anyhow; barring some miracle, it seems certain that Teddy Kennedy is going to win in '76, if he runs. And more importantly, because if we do throw in with the GOP even once on the "lesser of two evils" basis, it will permanently destroy our credibility as a party of principle.
The second course, in contrast, offers us an opportunity to make a great deal of progress in converting people to the libertarian viewpoint. If we, and we alone in the political arena, correctly predict what is going to happen, and why, then people will be far more inclined to turn to us to get them out of the mess.
In other words, we must prepare now to take advantage of the widespread public dissat- isfaction that is inevitably going to occur when present policies result in catastrophe.
-/- DFN
LP MATERIAL IN STOCK
The following items are the only ones currently available from LP National. Minimum order $2. 10% discount on orders of $20 or more.
MEMBERSHIP APPLICATIONS — no charge up to 24; 11¢ each for 25 or more.
1972 PLATFORMS — less than 10 copies, 15¢ each; 10-24, 12¢ each; 25-99, 10¢ each; 100-999, 8¢ each; 1,000 or more, 6¢ each.
NEWSLETTER — this issue only available; same price schedule as Platforms, above.
POLITICAL ACTION MANUAL — $1.25; 3/$3l 6/$5; l5/$10; 25 or more, 60¢ each.
HOSPERS 4th OF JULY SPEECH — revised to include short membership application, 35/$l; 100/$2.50; 500/$i0; 1,000/$17-50; 5,000/$75.
LAISSEZ FAIRE BUTTONS -- 1 1/4" with Libersign, 25¢; 3/50¢; 7/$l; 25/$3; 100/$10; 250/$20.
STATEMENT OF PRINCIPLES — 11" by 14" in hand lettered script, on heavy textured paper, $1; 3/$2; 10/$5.
WHERE THE MONEY WENT — paperback expose of bureaucratic bungles totaling $180 billion, 750 (only six copies left).
THANKS
Although it would be impossible to thank the many, many individuals, organizations, and publications that went "above and Beyond the call of duty" in helping the LP during the '72 campaign, we would like to take a few paragraphs to cite a few of those who did the most.
Undoubtedly, we will miss some of those who deserve special commendation, and for this we apologize. And, of course, it goes without saying that each and every LP state chairman deserves the special thanks of all libertarians everywhere.
To turn to specifics, however, it should be obvious that the very deepest thanks should go to our Presidential and Vice-Presidential candidates, Dr. John Hospers and Mrs. Tonie Nathan.
John and Tonie had the courage to accept the nominations of a previously unheard-of party, thus subjecting themselves to scorn and abuse on the part of many people, and incurring an obligation to spend literally thousands of hours of their own time on a venture that offered them no immediate personal gain. There will be others who take up the banner they carried, in future years, but they were the first — and for this they deserve our special and undying appreciation.
Second only to the thanks owed John and Tonie are those owed to Bill Susel and Ed Crane, who served as the campaign managers for the two candidates respectively, spending great amounts of their own time and money in the process.
Special thanks are also owed to the many people who performed various services for the LP and its candidates. Among these are Dr. Marvin Edwards in Oklahoma, Georgiann Trammell in Texas, Andrew and Priscilla Ketchen and Ken and Cynthia Knapton in New Hampshire, and Winston Duke in Illinois, all of whom were responsible for providing facilities, raising funds, and arranging publicity for John and Tonie while they were on tour in those respective states.
Two other individuals who deserve special mention are Jim Davidson, in Washington DC, who sent out a mailing to 7,000 libertarians at his own expense, and Taya Boyls in Colorado, who oversaw the operation of the Campaign Fund, a task which included the sending of over 150 "thank-you" letters.
And finally, thanks are owed to the New Right Coalition, which was the only organization (to our knowledge) that officially endorsed the LP ticket.
BITS & PIECES
INFORMATION ON SIL AND REASON ENCLOSED
Enclosed with this Newsletter, you will find material describing the Society for Individual Liberty, and Reason magazine. We urge you to study this material carefully, and to join SIL and subscribe to Reason if you are not already a member or subscriber. SIL is the largest libertarian organization in America (about 3,000 members to our 2,000), and offers many good educational items; the local SIL chapter is also probably your best place to locate new LP members. Reason is by far the best libertarian magazine being published, and has given the LP more coverage than any other publication.
GREEN SHEET ADDENDA
Enclosed you will also find a new "green sheet," listing LP officers and state chairmen. And (alas) it’s already out of date. Alaska LP’s address is now Box 726, College, AK 99701. And the Temporary State Chairman in Arizona is now Freeman Fox, 2930 E. Osborn Road, Phoenix AZ 85016.
TREASURY DEPT COMPILING GUN-OWNER LIST
We have been informed that the Treasury Dept. has ordered all gun shops to report the names of everyone bringing in guns for repairs. So, if you have a gun you don’t want Uncle Sam to know about ...
SILVER SALES AGENTS WANTED
Utah LP Chairman Karl Bray is setting up a nationwide organization of libertarian silver and gold sales agents. If you’re interested, contact Karl at the address on the "green sheet."
POWELL MEMORANDUM ON FREE ENTERPRISE
Of possible interest to LP members is the memorandum drafted by Lewis F. Powell (now a Supreme Court Justice), for the National Chamber of Commerce. Entitled "The Attack on the American Free Enterprise System," it outlines some of the problems we face, and suggests some solutions. This memo might be a door-opener for local LPs to get invitations to speak to local Chambers of Commerce. The memorandum is availbale free from the National Chamber, l6l5 H. Street NW, Washington DC 20006. Ask for Reprint #2900.
THE YEAR ONE
On December 11, 1972, the Libertarian Party will be one year old. And some year it has been!
When the eight individuals who originally set up the Committee to Organize a Libertarian Party met on that December day a year ago, and decided to dissolve the Committee and go ahead with the Party, the as-yet unofficial Party had 42 members. In the one year since that time, that number has grown to about 2,000.
In its first year, the LP took in and spent over $24,000; we currently have $1,370 in our treasury, with about $500 owed to us by various people.
We nominated a Presidential ticket, and our two candidates, Dr. Hospers and Mrs. Nathan, traveled a total of over 10,000 miles, and spoke to over 5,000 people in person, and reached an estimated 25 million via radio and TV, The Party, and its candidates, received newspaper and magazine writeups totalling approximately 2,000 column-inches that we know of; the actual total was almostcertainly at least twice that much. (2,000 column-inches is the approximate equivalent of 12 full-size newspaper pages, or 24 tabloid pages.) The papers and magazines giving us coverage ranged from The New York Times, Denver Post, and Chicago Tribune and other such "establishment" papers to underground papers like the Village Voice and Los Angeles Star. Even the government gave us some coverage, via the Stars and Stripes and the Public TV Network. We got mentioned in Newsweek, and Jeffrey st. John gave us a good story on the CBS radio network program Spectrum.
Of course, we didn't confine our efforts to mass media. We distributed over 100,000 pieces of literature from the National Office (and at least another 100,000 pieces were produced by the various state and local LP organizations).
We ran or endorsed a total of twelve candidates in addition to our national ticket; only one of them won, but they got out a lot of libertarian ideas -- more than anyone else has done, excepting only a few of the most famous prolific libertarian authors.
The LP is now generally recognized as one of six significant minority parties in the United States -- no mean achievement, cons idering the fact that there were over a dozen candidates running for President this year, not counting Nixon and McGovern. In the two states where Hospers and Nathan were on the ballot, they outpolled several of the other minority-party candidates, despite the fact that we had less people and less money.
In sum, the LP has done more, in its first year of existence, than any other libertarian organization has ever done in an equivalent time. The credit for this achievement belongs to you, the members -- for your work, your ideas, and your financial contributions.
We cannot rest on our laurels, however. It would be the greatest of tragedies if we were to drift away, to "let things go" until 1976, or even 1974, We must press forward with the greatest vigor -- educating, recruiting, and organizing.
Our period of most rapid growth, in terms of percentage gains, is now behind us. Never again will we multiply our membership by a factor of forty-plus in one year. We have already got the majority of the hard-core libertarians who are interested in political action; from now on, we will have to break fresh ground.
The National Office will be doing everything it can to generate new leads, but the brunt of the burden will fall on the state and local organizations. We can locate some of the people who are prime prospects (although the· state and local orgpnizations should be doing this, too). Once we have located them, however, it is up to all of you out there to win them over and sign them up.
We think that even the most conservative growth estimates indicate that we can double the LP1 s membership each year for the next four years; this growth rate, which works out to a paltry 6% per month, compounded, will give us 4,000 members by the end of '73; 8,000 by the end of '74; 16,000 by the end of '75; and 32,000 by the end of 1976. If we can average 9% per month, we will triple our membership each year, giving us 160,000 members by the end of 1976. And if we can average 12% per month, we will quadruple in size each year, giving us over half a million members by the end of '76.
How far we go depends on you. So don't slow down now, just because the election is over.
As noted above, our total national and state membership is now approximately 2,000, with 40% of that figure being national members, and 60% being state members. Nationwide, we now have about 10 members per million population, on the average, but some states are far ahead of others, and deserve special mention.
CALIFORNIA -- Now has over 350 members, making it by far the largest state LP organization.
NEW YORK -- with approximately 200 members, is number two.
TEXAS and ILLINOIS -- with over 100 members each, are running neck-and-neck for third.
ALASKA -- with 17 national members, and over 25 members altogether, has by far the highest number of members per capita.
There are still three states where we have no members at all -- West Virginia, North Dakota, and South Dakota.
EXECCOMM VOTES
The LP National Executive Committee met in Albuquerque, NM, on November 25th, with 12 of the 18 voting members present. At that meeting, which was also attended by- about 25 non-voting observers, the following actions were taken.
DUES LEFT UNCHANGED, NEWSLETTER TO BE PUBLISHED BI-MONTHLY IN 1973
After considerable discussion, it was decided not to raise National LP membership dues for 1973, but rather to decrease the Newsletter's publication schedule from monthly to bi-monthly during the coming non-election year. Although a previous survey had indicated that 85% of the national members would be willing to pay dues at a 25% higher level, the ExecComm felt it was better to keep dues low. It was also noted that nearly 2/3 of the cost of producing and mailing the Newsletter was in postage and handling costs, so a great deal could be saved by going bi-monthly. It was felt that during a non-election year, a bi-monthly schedule would be sufficient to convey news, also. Subscription price for a Newsletter subscription alone (i.e. not as part of a membership) was reduced from $3 to $2 for one year (now 6 issues, instead of 12).
ADS IN ANALOG, INTELLECTUAL DIGEST APPROVED
It was voted to spend $900 to run two ads in non-movement publications, to reach new prospects. $300 will be spent for a half-page ad in Analog Science Fiction, and $600 for a half-column ad in Intellectual Digest. The Analog ad will promote the LP directly, while the ID ad will promote the paperback edition of Dr. Hospers' book; the latter is to take advantage of a 40% reduced rate for book ads. The book orders will go directly to Reason, the publisher, and Reason will forward to us the names of all respondents. In addition, Reason is giving us six full-page ads at no charge, in return for our paying for the ID ad. Both of these ads will run early next Spring.
"DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE" SET AS LP THEME FOR NEXT TWO TO FOUR YEARS
It was voted to drop "Break Free" as our over-riding theme, and to adopt the theme "Declare Your Independence," which it was felt will tie in well with the upcoming bicentennial. New bumperstickers, buttons, and brochures centered on this theme will be available soon; details in next Newsletter. It was also voted to continue carrying Dr. Hospers' 4th of July speech, and to re-stock the ever-popular "Laissez Faire" buttons with the Libersign.
"SATELLITE" ORGANIZATI0NS APPROVED
Approval was given for the establishment of four "satellite" organizations, which will work on special projects of value to the Party. These are a Committee to lobby for easier ballot requirements for minority parties, a candidates advisory committee, a consumer-rights organization which will publicize the anti-consumer-interest effects of government "protective" legislation" and will mobilize public sentiment on this point, and a publishing/services outfit which will produce, catalog and supply a wide variety of material for LP members and state organizations.
EIGHT STATES' AFFILATIONS APPROVED
Affiliation petitions submitted by state LPs in Missouri, and Colorado, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, Ohio and Pennsylvania were accepted, bringing the total of recognized state LP affiliates to 15, up from 8 prior to the ExecComm meeting (Michigan was already recognized, but submitted a petition any how). A petition from Arizona was rejected, after evidence was presented that there were irregularities in that state's temporary organization. A petition from Wisconsin was approved subject to resubmission with signatures, rather than typed names. A motion by some California LP members to remove recognition from the currently recognized organization, headed by Alan Coon, and accept a petition from their group instead, was rejected.
It was voted that in the future, petitions for affiliation cannot be submitted until a state convention has been held, at which the National LP Statement of Principles is endorsed, officers elected, and a state Constitution and By-Laws adopted. This will hopefully eliminate problems of the type which arose in the Arizona and California situations.
OTHER ACTIONS TAKEN
A resignation from the ExecComm, submitted by James Bryan of Oregon, was accepted, and the resulting At-Large vacancy was filled by electing Paul Hodgson, previously ExecComm member from Region 8. This leaves a vacancy to be filled by Region 8.
It was voted to take the money remaining in the Campaign Fund (about $155) and return it to the Party's national treasury, as partial repayment of the $250 given to the Campaign Fund in June.
It was voted that in the future, National LP will not invoke the FCC "Fairness Doctrine" to get equal time on radio and TV. State organizations and individual members may do as they wish.
The 1973 LP Conference (off-year Convention) will be held the second weekend in June. Location is not yet established, but should be known by the time of the next Newsletter. Paul Hodgson was given the authority to draft a letter to Ayn Rand, pointing out her inconsistencies in endorsing Nixon, and asking her to explain her position. Draft will be submitted to ExecComm by mail for approval before it is sent, and will be signed by those ExecComm members who wish to do so.