[Lnc-business] Discussion of LNC goals for 2016 and the 2016-2018 term

Caryn Ann Harlos carynannharlos at gmail.com
Fri Jul 1 04:33:15 EDT 2016


Dr. Lark:

That (both messages) was a fantastic summary and a lot to think about.  I
may be delayed in responding as I am using the days remaining before report
deadline to try to have extensive personal discussion with each of the nine
affiliates in my region, but I will respond as soon as I can and look
forward to reading what others have to say.

*In Liberty,*
*Caryn Ann Harlos*
Region 1 Representative, Libertarian National Committee (Alaska, Arizona,
Colorado, Hawaii, Kansas, Montana, Utah, Wyoming, Washington) - Caryn.Ann.
Harlos at LP.org
Communications Director, Libertarian Party of Colorado
<http://www.lpcolorado.org/>
Colorado State Coordinator, Libertarian Party Radical Caucus
<http://www.lpradicalcaucus.org/>


On Friday, July 1, 2016, James Lark <jwl3s at eservices.virginia.edu> wrote:

> Dear colleagues:
>
>
> I hope all is well with you. I am writing to initiate a discussion of LNC
> goals for the rest of 2016 and the 2016 – 2018 term.  I wish to devote
> time to discussion of this topic during the upcoming meeting in Las Vegas.
> While it would be nice if we were able to approve goals for either 2016 or
> the term during the meeting, I do not consider it necessary for us to do so.
>
>
> In what follows, I offer some comments and suggestions about selecting our
> goals for 2016 and the 2016-2018 term, in addition to comments about some
> projects and outcomes I would like the LNC to consider.  I hope you find
> my comments to be helpful.  (Those of you who served on previous LNCs
> with me may recall that I sent similar messages concerning goals for those
> terms.)
>
> Allow me to emphasize that the purpose of this message is to initiate a
> discussion of goals.  While I have enclosed below some prospective goals
> for your consideration, I have not offered suggestions concerning the
> specific strategies, tactics, and resources required to achieve such goals.
> I believe we should prepare a list of reasonable goals for consideration,
> determine the ones for which suitable strategies and tactics exist (given
> our resource constraints), and then select and prioritize the goals we deem
> most appropriate.
>
>
>
>
>
> I. Assumptions and Preferences
>
> In offering these comments I have the following preferences and use the
> following assumptions:
>
> 1)  I believe the LNC will conclude the 2016 fiscal year in the black.  However,
> for various reasons I prefer to be conservative regarding revenues for the
> rest of the year.  Thus, for the purpose of this discussion I shall
> assume that for 2016, revenues will exceed expenses by no more than
> $100,000.
>
> 2)  While I anticipate that membership will continue to increase this
> year, I do not anticipate a major increase during the rest of this year.  I
> believe it is not unreasonable to assume the LP will have between 15,000
> and 17,000 sustaining members by Dec. 31, 2016.
>
> 3)  I have a very strong preference for selecting goals involving matters
> over which the LNC has the ability to control or to influence
> substantially.  For example, the quality of LPHQ service to our members
> and the suite of goods and services available to our members are matters
> over which the LNC has effective control.
>
> Although I have this preference, I have suggested below membership and
> fundraising goals for the 2016-2018 term; these goals are in some sense
> exceptions to this preference. That is, to a substantial degree our
> membership and fundraising levels are influenced by events outside our
> ability to influence substantially, much less control.  For example, the
> selection by the Democratic and Republican parties of two truly horrible
> candidates for president could cause significant increases in our
> membership and donations.  Similarly, an endorsement of the Libertarian
> Party and/or the Johnson-Weld ticket by a prominent celebrity with no
> previous connection to the libertarian movement could help us greatly.
>
> 4)  At the risk of belaboring what may be obvious, I believe it is very
> important for the LNC to ascertain to the extent possible the preferences
> of our members and affiliate organizations.  In particular, I hope my
> fellow regional representatives are soliciting information about such
> preferences from their regional affiliates.
>
>
>
> 5)  As far as I am aware, the LNC has not established a process for
> working with the Johnson-Weld campaign to select and achieve goals of
> mutual benefit.  If such a process has not been established, I recommend
> that Mr. Sarwark (in consultation with the Johnson-Weld campaign
> management) establish a select LNC committee to work with the campaign
> concerning such goals.
>
>
>
> II. Goal Categories
>
> For the purpose of exposition, I shall use the list of categories below;
> they are listed in no particular order of importance.  I hope you find
> this categorization method to be helpful.  I realize there are other ways
> of categorizing our activities; you are welcome to recommend other ways for
> our consideration.  Please note that these categories are not mutually
> exclusive; many goals can be included under several categories.
>
>
>
> 1)  Financial Resources
>
> This category concerns issues associated with raising funds for our
> operations.  Specifically, we should determine our financial needs in
> relation to our goals for the year and term, and identify the means by
> which we obtain funding for those needs.  As part of determining goals in
> this category, we should consider the following:
>
> * How much do we need for the 2016-2018 term to accomplish our goals?
>
> * How do we attract new donors (including those who are not LP members)?
>
> * How do we encourage current donors (including LP members) to increase
> their donations?
>
> * How do we recognize and reward donors for their generosity?
>
> * Are our current methods of fundraising appropriate?
>
> * Should we increase the amount we allocate to a reserve fund (e.g., a
> "rainy day fund")?
>
> I believe we should enable our donors to select more easily the budget
> categories (or perhaps specific projects) they want their donations to fund.
> While LP.org already provides special webpages for the building fund, the
> Legal Offense Fund, and ballot access, it may be helpful to provide a
> larger menu of choices (e.g., affiliate support, youth outreach) to which
> donors can direct their donations.
>
>
> 2)  Member and Affiliate Support
>
> This category involves several areas of activity. I consider these issues
> to be of particular importance:
>
> * Do we have an acceptable level of performance in providing service to
> our members?  In what ways can we improve our service?
>
> * In what ways can we improve our support to our affiliate organizations?
>  This support can occur in many ways, such as funding ballot access
> activities and/or outreach activities, providing advice on improving
> organizational structure (e.g., filling potentially dangerous lacunae in
> organization bylaws), and providing legal advice on dealing with government
> regulations (e.g., the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA)).
>
> Based upon the discussion concerning a current e-mail ballot, I believe it
> would be appropriate for the Affiliate Support Committee to develop a plan
> for providing financial assistance to state affiliates to help fund
> outreach projects.
>
>
> * How do we help our members become better activists and candidates?  In
> particular, what educational and training programs should we sponsor?
>
> * In what ways can we improve the process of recognizing and rewarding our
> members?
>
> * In what ways can we improve *LP News*, LP.org, and our social media
> webpages to provide useful information to our members?
>
>
>
> From what I understand, the work performed by Andy Burns (State Affiliate
> Development Specialist) has been very well received by many state
> affiliates.  The LNC should consider in what ways the program supporting
> Mr. Burns can be improved.
>
>
> During my service as national chairman (the 2000-2002 LNC term), executive
> director Steve Dasbach and I considered the possibility of funding a
> "regional director" to assist the state affiliates of New Jersey, New York,
> and Pennsylvania.  We thought a "regional director" might be able to take
> advantage of economies of scale to improve the ability of these affiliates
> to respond to prospect inquiries, to generate media coverage, to monitor
> important legislation, and in general to make the affiliates more effective
> in their efforts.  The LNC may wish to consider a similar idea.
>
> I am considering whether to provide financial support to fund "field
> organizers" to assist with building Libertarian groups on college campuses,
> perhaps as part of a broader program to provide assistance to affiliate
> organizations.  The LNC may also want to consider the possibility of
> funding "field organizers" as part of its support to affiliate
> organizations.
>
> Incidentally, the LNC has funded such programs in the past.  For example,
> Joe Knight of New Mexico served as a "field organizer" to assist in
> building campus organizations during the early 1990s.  If I remember
> correctly, by 1993 the LNC had discontinued the program.  I believe the
> LNC decided that the program did not produce results that justified the
> cost.  I believe the LNC also funded a position of "field organizer" for
> Marla Bottemiller during roughly the same time period.  Again, the LNC
> eventually chose not to continue the program.  I suspect the position was
> not continued for the same reason the campus field organizer program was
> not continued; however, I do not know this with certainty.
>
> Please note that some state affiliates would like to see a "unified
> membership program" reinstituted.  For example, the Libertarian Party of
> Virginia has passed resolutions at our state conventions that encourage the
> LP to reinstitute such a program.
>
>
>
> 3)  Membership Recruitment and Retention
>
> This category involves issues of how we recruit new members and retain
> current members.  Of course, our ability to recruit and retain members
> depends upon many factors, such as the success of our candidates and the
> quality of our service to our members.  Some questions for our
> consideration include:
>
> * Should we target specific population segments for recruitment efforts?  For
> example, should we emphasize outreach to college students, owners of small
> businesses, members of certain demographic groups, etc.?
>
> * In what ways should we seek new members?  These ways could include
> direct mail (both postal and Internet), advertising in various media
> (including radio and cable TV ads, YouTube videos, Google ads, billboards),
> and sponsorship of information tables at conventions of various
> organizations.
>
> * In what ways can we improve our literature and website to facilitate our
> recruiting efforts?
>
> * In what ways can we improve the process of recognizing and rewarding our
> members?  (This issue is common to several categories.)
>
> As you may know, I am involved in various ways in libertarian outreach to
> high school and college students.  In addition, some of the funds I have
> donated to the LNC are under my control as the campus outreach coordinator.
>  Also, I am a member of the board of directors (and member of the board
> of advisors) of libertarian organizations that promote outreach to college
> students.
>
> Thus, I may have conflicts of interest with regard to the approval of LNC
> goals involving campus outreach.  Should I believe such conflicts exist,
> I shall bring them to the attention of the LNC and refrain from voting on
> such matters.
>
>
> 4)  Influence/Impact
>
> This category involves issues of how we can influence the political
> landscape, and how we can increase the impact of our activities.  Some
> questions for our consideration include:
>
> * In what ways can we improve our influence with various news media and
> information channels?  (I use the term "information channel" to describe
> entities such as blogs.)  For example, should we issue more press
> releases?  Should we devote more effort to finding interview
> opportunities for LP members and candidates?  Should we invest more
> resources in “social media”?
>
>
> * In what ways can we improve our ability to mobilize our members and
> friends to support specific projects?  For example, if we need to
> mobilize our members to support/oppose a specific piece of legislation in
> Congress, how can we best achieve this?  (One important aspect of this
> may involve how we recognize and reward those who respond to our calls for
> action.)
>
> * In what ways can we establish and improve relations with "libertarian
> movement" organizations (e.g., Cato Institute), "friend of the family"
> organizations (e.g., National Taxpayers Union), and issue-oriented
> organizations (e.g., Marijuana Policy Project)?  For example, should we
> make a greater effort to obtain speaking invitations for LP members at
> conferences sponsored by the aforementioned organizations?  Should we
> invest more resources in sponsoring information booths at such conferences?
>
> * In what ways can we benefit by working with other organizations on
> specific projects, such as promoting good legislation/defeating bad
> legislation in Congress?
>
> * Should we consider participating in litigation to achieve specific
> results?  For example, should we consider additional challenges to
> campaign finance regulation?  Should we participate in litigation
> concerning "Top Two" legislation?
>
> I believe an important component to our increasing our influence/impact is
> for the LNC to improve its capacity for strategic thinking and long-range
> planning.  In particular, I believe we must do a better job of
> anticipating opportunities for the LP to make a positive impact on the
> political landscape.
>
>
> 5)  Candidate Support
>
> This category involves issues of how we can best support our candidates at
> all levels.  Some of the questions in this category include:
>
> *  In what ways should we support the 2016 presidential campaign?  For
> example, should we establish a goal of assisting the Johnson-Weld campaign
> to achieve approval ratings of at least 15% in public opinion polls?
>
>
> * What programs should we sponsor to train our candidates and campaign
> personnel?  These programs should include not only training in the "nuts
> and bolts" of running successful campaigns, but also helping candidates to
> develop platforms that are both Libertarian and appealing to voters.  (Note:
>  It may be appropriate for us to outsource certain types of training to
> organizations such as the Leadership Institute.)
>
> * In what ways should we publicize our candidates, both inside and outside
> the LP?  In what ways should we recognize and reward our candidates?
>
> * In what ways should we support our elected and appointed officials?
>
> As part of candidate development and support, I believe we need to develop
> and maintain a high-quality repository of information about prior
> campaigns, both to provide information about what ideas have been tried and
> to compile a list of "best practices" for campaigns.
>
>
> 6)  Operations Issues
>
> This category includes various issues involving the operations of the LNC
> and our responsibility to conduct the affairs of the Libertarian Party.  Some
> of the issues we should address include:
>
> * What are our goals for the 2018 national convention in New Orleans,
> Louisiana?
>
> * How should we evaluate prospective national convention sites for 2020
> (and perhaps 2022)?
>
> * Do we need to review our internal rules and procedures?  For example,
> do we need to conduct a review of the Policy Manual?
>
> * Should the LNC adopt a more formal (or perhaps, more extensive)
> committee structure to assist us in our efforts?
>
> * Should we conduct a formal evaluation of the LP Bylaws, with the purpose
> of offering suggestions for improvement to the 2018 Bylaws Committee?
>
> * Should we evaluate the current organizational structure of the LPHQ
> staff?  (Of course, such an evaluation would require the participation of
> Wes Benedict in his capacity as Executive Director.)
>
>
> III. Suggested Goals
>
> Allow me to suggest that we consider adopting goals along the following
> lines.  They are listed in roughly a descending order of importance.  Please
> do not hesitate to offer comments and suggestions about the goals we should
> consider.
>
> G1: The LP will have at least 20,000 sustaining members as of July 1,
> 2018.
>
> G2: The LNC will take action to see that each state has an operational
> affiliate party by July 1, 2017. I suggest that "operational state
> affiliate" be defined in the following manner:
>
> * There is a properly maintained website for the affiliate (perhaps the
> website is paid for and maintained by the LNC).
>
>
> * There is at least one LP member in the state who actively serves as an
> official contact for the affiliate in its dealings with the LNC, and there
> is at least one LP member in the state who actively serves as a contact for
> the affiliate in its dealings with the state government.
>
>
> * LPHQ has a copy of the current bylaws and associated documents for the
> affiliate, along with a copy of the relevant laws of that state regarding
> political parties and ballot access.
>
> (We may wish to add to the definition something along the lines of
> "Inquiries to the affiliate receive a response in a timely manner.")
>
> G3: The LNC will raise at least $3.5 million from July 1, 2016 until July
> 1, 2018.
>
> G4: The LNC will develop and approve new and revised outreach literature,
> to be available no later than Sept. 15, 2016.  Some of the literature
> (e.g., issue pamphlets) should be available in the form of PDFs that can be
> downloaded from LP.org.
>
> Note: I believe the LNC should pursue this goal as part of a more general
> process of literature development and evaluation.  In a separate message
> I shall send you some suggestions concerning this more general process.
>
> G5: The LNC will sponsor a series of seminars/workshops in 2017 at various
> locations around the country.  The workshops could be structured largely
> along the lines of the "Success '97" seminars (instruction on the basics of
> affiliate development and candidate development) or the more recent “LP
> Activist Training By Libertarians, For Libertarians” events (see comments
> below).  Note:  Approval of this goal should be contingent upon the
> degree of interest demonstrated by our members and affiliates.
>
> According to Carla Howell (LP Political Director), the aforementioned LP
> activist training sessions in Alexandria, Virginia in October 2015 and
> Burlingame, California in February 2016 went well.  She indicated that 29
> people attended the Alexandria event and 22 attended the Burlingame event;
> she said that feedback concerning the events was very positive.
>
> I have enclosed information in an appendix below concerning the goals
> adopted by the LNC for the 2014-2016 term.
>
>
>
>
> IV. Additional Considerations
>
> In addition to the suggested goals, I hope the LNC will accomplish the
> following during the next several months:
>
>
> *  Assist the Johnson-Weld campaign to achieve approval ratings of at
> least 15% in public opinion polls.
>
>
> * Develop a well-maintained calendar of the events at which it is
> desirable to have an LP presence (e.g., speaker, information booth,
> literature distributed to attendees, advertising in conference program).  For
> example, the calendar would include the dates of the national conferences
> of "friend of the family" organizations.  Presumably the calendar would
> also include information as to event location, contact information for
> event coordinators, etc.
>
> * Utilize *LP News* and the website more effectively to recognize and
> reward quality activism. For example, I would like to see an article in
> each issue of *LP News* that recognizes an outstanding effort by an LP
> activist, affiliate organization, and/or candidate.  Similarly, I would
> like to see a regular series of articles on the website that recognize such
> outstanding efforts.
>
> As an aside, I realize the effort required to identify and recognize great
> work can be substantial. Moreover, I realize that such recognition can
> actually cause problems.  (Some members may believe the honorees do not
> deserve such recognition.  Other members may feel slighted by the fact
> that their efforts have not been recognized.)  However, all things
> considered I believe we shall benefit by including more material in our
> "house organs" about the successes of our members.
>
> * After analyzing the results of the 2016 elections, develop and approve a
> plan by Feb. 15, 2017 for dealing with ballot access issues during the
> 2017-2020 time period.
>
>
>
> I shall greatly appreciate any comments and suggestions you have
> concerning LNC goals and projects for this year and this term.  In
> addition, I would be grateful if Wes Benedict and his staff colleagues
> would review this message and offer their comments.
>
>
>
> I consider it likely that I have omitted some issues you will deem worthy
> of discussion.  (This message is already rather long; I didn’t want it to
> exceed the length of *War and Peace*.)  Hence, I may send a revised
> version of this message in the near future, along with a revised list of
> goals for consideration.
>
> Thanks for your work for liberty, and for your consideration of this
> message.  Best wishes to you in all your endeavors; I look forward to
> seeing you in Las Vegas, if not before.
>
> Take care,
> Jim
>
>
> James W. Lark, III
> Dept. of Systems and Information Engineering
> Applied Mathematics Program, Dept. of Engineering and Society
> University of Virginia
>
>
> Advisor, The Liberty Coalition
> University of Virginia
>
> Region 5 Representative, Libertarian National Committee
>
>
> P.S.:  Thanks to Carla Howell and Bob Johnston for the information they
> provided me.
>
> -----
>
>
>
>
> APPENDIX:
>
>
>
> Note:  The following goals for the 2014-2016 term were adopted by the LNC
> during its meeting on Sept. 20-21, 2014:
>
>
>
> 1)  1000 candidates in 2016
>
>
>
> 2)  Take action to see that each state has an operational affiliate by
> June 1, 2015
>
>
>
> 3)  300 candidates by 2016 trained in “Who’s Driving” or something
> equivalent
>
>
>
> 4)  Updated issue-based outreach literature
>
>
>
> 5)  38-state, party-status ballot access as of December 1, 2016
>
>
>
> 6)  200 elected Libertarian officials in December, 2016
>
>
>
> The LNC modified Goal 2 during its meeting on Nov. 14-15, 2015.  Specifically,
> the date by which the goal was to be achieved was changed from June 1, 2015
> to May 29, 2016.  In addition, the following definition of “operational
> affiliate” was adopted:
>
>
>
> *  The affiliate has a website that is actively updated
>
> *  Calls to the affiliate are responded to within three days
>
> *  The affiliate has a bank account.
>
>
>
>
>
> Regarding Goal 1, Bob Johnston (Candidate and Affiliate Support
> Specialist) has indicated that as of this moment there are 543 candidates
> for 2016, and that this number may increase.
>
>
>
> As far as I know, Goal 2 was not achieved.  I do not know how far we are
> from achieving the goal.
>
>
>
> It is not clear whether Goal 3 was achieved, because some of the training
> took place at state and local affiliate events.  The number of candidates
> trained at these events may not have been reported to LPHQ.
>
>
>
> Goal 4 was not achieved, although some progress was made.
>
>
> We shall not know until later this year whether Goal 5 has been achieved.
>
>
>
>
> Regarding Goal 6, Mr. Johnston has indicated that there are at least 142
> LP elected officials as of this moment.
>
>
>
>
>
>


-- 
*In Liberty,*
*Caryn Ann Harlos*
Region 1 Representative, Libertarian National Committee (Alaska, Arizona,
Colorado, Hawaii, Kansas, Montana, Utah, Wyoming, Washington) - Caryn.Ann.
Harlos at LP.org <Caryn.Ann.Harlos at LP.org>
Communications Director, Libertarian Party of Colorado
<http://www.lpcolorado.org>
Colorado State Coordinator, Libertarian Party Radical Caucus
<http://www.lpradicalcaucus.org>
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