[Lnc-business] Fwd: RE: LP Donation to Mark Miller Campaign

Mon Sep 19 12:48:52 EDT 2016

Mark Miller has been endorsed by TWO of the largest newspapers in Texas, so
far...Houston Chronicle and Dallas Morning News.  Links to those were
included in Daniel's original e-mail, I believe.

On Mon, Sep 19, 2016 at 11:46 AM, Wes Benedict <wes.benedict at lp.org> wrote:

> Robert says my recollection is 100% correct -- so now I'm 66.7% certain I
> remember correctly : ). Aaron Starr's confirmation would make it 100%.
>
> Wes Benedict, Executive Director
> Libertarian National Committee, Inc.
> 1444 Duke St., Alexandria, VA 22314(202) 333-0008 ext. 232, wes.benedict at lp.orgfacebook.com/libertarians @LPNational
> Join the Libertarian Party at: http://lp.org/membership
>
>
>
> -------- Forwarded Message --------
> Subject: RE: [Lnc-business] LP Donation to Mark Miller Campaign
> Date: Mon, 19 Sep 2016 12:38:28 -0400
> From: Robert Kraus <robert.kraus at lp.org> <robert.kraus at lp.org>
> To: 'Wes Benedict' <wes.benedict at lp.org> <wes.benedict at lp.org>, 'Bob
> Johnston' <bob.johnston at lp.org> <bob.johnston at lp.org>
>
> Your recollection is 100% correct.
>
>
>
> Live Free!
>
>
>
> *Robert*
>
>
> Robert S. Kraus - Dir of Operations
> Operations at LP.org
> Libertarian National Committee
> Ph: 202.333.0008 x 231
>
>
>
> Join today: https://www.lp.org/membership
>
> LP FB Page: https://www.facebook.com/libertarians
> size=2 width="100%" align=center tabindex=-1>
>
> *From:* Lnc-business [mailto:lnc-business-bounces at hq.lp.org
> <lnc-business-bounces at hq.lp.org>] *On Behalf Of *Wes Benedict
> *Sent:* Monday, September 19, 2016 12:16 PM
> *To:* lnc-business at hq.lp.org
> *Cc:* Bob Johnston
> *Subject:* Re: [Lnc-business] LP Donation to Mark Miller Campaign
>
>
>
> Perhaps Aaron Starr remembers, but I'm thinking the issue was that the LNC
> would have had to file some campaign finance reports with the state of
> Indiana, and you all decided that Aaron Starr and the LNCC would be
> willing to handle the burden of that extra campaign finance reporting. I
> don't think it was an issue of prohibitions on giving directly to Ed
> Coleman--rather reporting hassles, but again, that's off the top of my head
> and is about something from over 5 years ago.
>
>
>
> Wes Benedict, Executive Director
>
> Libertarian National Committee, Inc.
>
> 1444 Duke St., Alexandria, VA 22314
>
> (202) 333-0008 ext. 232, wes.benedict at lp.org
>
> facebook.com/libertarians @LPNational
>
> Join the Libertarian Party at: http://lp.org/membership
>
> On 9/19/2016 12:03 PM, Sam Goldstein wrote:
>
> If memory serves, when the LNC contributed money to Ed Coleman's campaign
> for Indianapolis City-County Council, the money had to flow through the
> LNCC since Ed want not a federal candidate.  I don't think the LNC can give
> any money directly to the Miller campaign but it would be a good question
> to pose to Paula Edwards.
>
>
>
> Sam
>
>
> Sam Goldstein
>
> Libertarian National Committee
>
> Member at Large
>
> 8925 N Meridian St, Ste 101
>
> Indianapolis IN 46260
>
> 317-850-0726 Phone
>
> 317-582-1773 Fax
>
>
>
> On Mon, Sep 19, 2016 at 11:59 AM, Wes Benedict <wes.benedict at lp.org>
> wrote:
>
> Bob, if you're researching this, also be sure to check on any timing
> issues, in other words are there restrictions or deadlines on when a
> committee has to tell the Texas Ethics Commission they plan to spend money
> on a candidate for the November 8, 2016 elections. It could vary whether
> it's the state party or directly to the candidate, so that might affect
> whether giving through LPTexas versus directly to the candidate.
>
>
>
> Wes Benedict, Executive Director
>
> Libertarian National Committee, Inc.
>
> 1444 Duke St., Alexandria, VA 22314
>
> (202) 333-0008 ext. 232, wes.benedict at lp.org
>
> facebook.com/libertarians @LPNational
>
> Join the Libertarian Party at: http://lp.org/membership
>
> On 9/19/2016 11:40 AM, Daniel Hayes wrote:
>
> Bob,
>
>
>
> Research fast please.  It would be good to get this up today.
>
>
>
>
>
> Daniel Hayes
>
> LNC At Large Member
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
>
> On Sep 19, 2016, at 10:35 AM, Bob Johnston <bob.johnston at lp.org> wrote:
>
> Daniel,
>
>
>
> I need to research how much the LNC can donate to a non-federal candidate,
> and get back to you.
>
>
>
> My original thought was to donate the funds directly to the LPTX, which is
> a federal filing party, and have them funnel the funds to the Miller
> campaign.
>
>
>
> Bob
>
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> *From:* Daniel Hayes [mailto:danielehayes at icloud.com
> <danielehayes at icloud.com>]
> *Sent:* Monday, September 19, 2016 11:30 AM
> *To:* lnc-business at hq.lp.org
> *Cc:* bob.johnston at lp.org
> *Subject:* Re: [Lnc-business] LP Donation to Mark Miller Campaign
>
>
>
> Sam,
>
>
>
> I agree about the time.  I wanted to hit send on what I had written
> already this morning before the hygienist started the cleaning.
>
>
>
>  I started writing this current email in the dentist chair, when he came
> up and saw my Louisiana Libertarian shirt he said he liked it.  He's
> currently independent but is going to be ReRegistering along with his
> wife.  She apparently is former military and has been donating to the
> Johnson campaign.
>
>
>
>
>
> But back on topic, before we put a motion out there, how much should we
> commit?
>
>
>
>  Should we do two separate motions?  One to Mark's campaign and one to TX
> LP with the understanding they donate to his campaign?
>
>
>
>
> I have CCed Bob Johnston on here since apparently he and I are psychically
> linked and both wrote Lauren at almost the same time and he seems to have a
> better understanding of what we can do in TX than I do.
>
>
>
> Bob what are the limits that the NLP/LNC could donate to the Mark Miller
> campaign?
>
>
>
> Daniel Hayes
>
> LNC At Large Member
>
>
>
>
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
>
>
> On Sep 19, 2016, at 9:43 AM, Sam Goldstein <goldsteinatlarge at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> Daniel,
>
>
>
> I would co-sponsor a motion for a LNC contribution to Mark Miller's
> campaign and/or a targeted contribution to the LPTX in
>
> his behalf based on the information provided above.
>
>
>
> However, you better write the motion and get it submitted for an email
> ballot very quickly as time is running out on this
>
> election year.
>
>
>
> Live Free,
>
>
>
>
> Sam Goldstein
>
> Libertarian National Committee
>
> Member at Large
>
> 8925 N Meridian St, Ste 101
>
> Indianapolis IN 46260
>
> 317-850-0726 Phone
>
> 317-582-1773 Fax
>
>
>
> On Mon, Sep 19, 2016 at 10:11 AM, Daniel Hayes <danielehayes at icloud.com>
> wrote:
>
>
>
> Mr. Chairman and fellow LNC members,
>
>
> We have been asked to make donations recently to certain campaigns.
> Despite having more money to do so than in the past, we clearly don't have
> the means, time or frankly, even the desire to donate to every person's
> campaign that is running as a Libertarian.  We need to develop some
> criteria to apply to the process to make it as fair and efficient as we
> possibly can.    I think that there should be implications of the campaign
> beyond just electing that one person to office.
>
>
>
> I intend to bring or support a motion for the NLP/LNC to donate funds to
> Mark Miller's campaign for Railroad Commissioner in Texas.  What's at
> stake is ballot access in Texas.  If they do not have a statewide
> candidate achieve 5% in this election, they lose their current ballot
> access and with the size of Texas, it will likely cost us multiple 6
> figures getting it back.  At present Dr. Miller's campaign is the only one
> that could be considered more than a paper candidacy.  As we had been
> having discussions about which campaigns should the LNC be donating to, it
> crossed my mind that Mark Miller's was exactly the sort we should be
> lending assistance to.  It also occurred to me that we might be hearing a
> little less about it than we might because his campaign manager is also our
> Special Projects Director, Lauren Daugherty and I know she works very hard
> to try and keep those roles separated.
>
> Making it brief, Mark Miller has raised significant money already, his
> campaign stands to benefit the whole TX Affiliate and save it and the NLP a
> LOT of money, he is highly qualified for the job,  he has gotten major
> endorsements.
>
> With that in mind I reached out to Lauren yesterday.  Apparently, some
> other people were having some of the same thoughts at the same time.
> Here is Lauren's response to my inquiry.
>
> "
>
> Mark Miller is an exceptional candidate. He’s highly qualified for the
> position he’s seeking and more qualified (by far) than his 3 opponents. If
> he was elected, he would be well prepared to serve. He’s been a Libertarian
> since the 1970s and is well versed on Libertarianism and able to
> communicate Libertarian ideas well. And, he’s also a solid leader. He’s
> well liked, kind, and personable. Rarely do we find candidates of any party
> that are so well rounded.
>
>
>
> Mark’s race is the top of the ticket in Texas this cycle. The Texas
> Railroad Commission is one of the most powerful agencies in Texas. It
> regulates oil and gas and has nothing to do with railroads. In Texas, oil
> & gas often trump property rights. It’s messy and outrageous and will make
> any normal human being hopping mad if they look into it. Mark is outspoken
> about protecting property rights.
>
>
>
> Mark has a PhD from Stanford in petroleum engineering and has spent over
> 40 years in the industry. In contrast, none of his opponents have worked
> one day in oil & gas.
>
>
>
> For the Libertarian Party of Texas to retain ballot access for 2018, we
> need one statewide candidate to achieve 5% of the vote. This cycle, the
> only statewide candidates on ballots in Texas are Railroad Commission
> (Mark’s race) and judicial races. Almost all of our judicial candidates
> this year are “paper candidates”. Mark is running the most active campaign,
> by far.
>
>
>
> We started this campaign 1 and a half years ago, when I left employment
> with LPTexas. We’ve raised over $70k so far and received 2 of the biggest
> media endorsements in Libertarian history. I expect that we’ll break $100k
> within the next 2 weeks. Mark is a full-time candidate. We anticipate that
> he’ll very likely get more media endorsements over the coming weeks. He’s
> talking with reporters almost daily and traveling extensively.
>
>
>
> We’ve just started robo calls to strategic areas and will have mailers
> promoting our endorsements starting in the next few days. We are planning a
> major radio buy that will flood the talk radio airwaves across Texas with
> Mark’s name and info on his endorsements and the LP for 2 weeks before
> early voting begins. This will cost $50k and we think this is critical to
> achieving the 5% needed to ensure ballot access. We’ve raised approximately
> $30k towards this so far and we expect to receive the final funding on that
> within the next week.
>
>
>
> If we are unable to achieve the 5% needed to secure ballot access, it will
> take approximately 80,000 verified signatures to regain ballot access. I’m
> told we’d need to shoot for approximately 125,000 signatures or more to
> make sure we have enough “good” signatures. In Texas, if someone votes in
> a primary, they are not eligible to sign a ballot access petition and this
> makes it more difficult. The signatures would have to be gathered within a
> 75 day window. Experts tell me that this would likely cost between $250,000
> and $500,000.
>
>
>
> In my opinion, it is far better to spend money now, promoting an
> exceptional candidate, rather than having to scramble to raise even more
> money to regain ballot access in 2018 or 2020. I know the fundraising
> situation in Texas better than anyone. If we lose ballot access, it will
> likely be 2020 before we can afford to regain it.
>
>
>
> Mark is a candidate that makes us all extra proud to be Libertarians. He’s
> highly qualified, and skilled communicator, and represents us very well. He
> can walk into a room of people who are skeptical or even of the Libertarian
> Party and when he walks out, they respect us and many support us.
>
>
> Here are our goals for Mark’s campaign: 1) achieve 5% (or far more!) of
> the vote in order to retain ballot access for 2018; 2) grow the Libertarian
> Party. Mark’s a team player. We are promoting Libertarians up and down the
> ballot whenever we can."
>
> "
>
> If the LNC donates to Mark’s campaign, we’d use the money on radio buys,
> and/or carefully targeted robo calls, and/or large postcard to strategic
> areas, educating voters about the endorsements, Mark’s credentials, and the
> LP.
>
>
>
> I think the max that the LNC could give Mark’s campaign directly, by law,
> is $5k. My understanding, based on what Bob Johnston has told me, is that
> if the LNC wanted to give more, they could donate it to LPTexas (which is
> currently an FEC filing entity) with the understanding that LPTexas would
> then donate the funds to the campaign. LPTexas receives directed donations
> regularly and I don’t foresee any problem with working with them in this
> way. One SLEC member said in the SLEC meeting yesterday that “Mark is our
> shining star”. SLEC, the officers, and key players, all agree and I think
> they’d be delighted to help in this way.
>
>
>
> Folks can read more about Mark here: miller4tx.com"
>
> "
>
>
>
> "Thank you for considering supporting his campaign. If anyone would like
> to talk with me directly, they can call/text me at 931 249 9924 or email
> me at lauren at miller4tx.com"
>
>
>
> Here are some links she sent to me also:
>
> http://www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/recommendations/arti
> cle/For-the-RRC-9206271.php?t=76087424ea438d9cbb
>
>
>
> http://www.dallasnews.com/opinion/editorials/20160915-we-rec
> ommend-mark-miller-for-texas-railroad-commissioner.ece
>
>
>
>
>
> Daniel Hayes
> LNC At Large Member
>
>
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> _______________________________________________
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>
>
>
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