[Lnc-business] Proposed

Fri Jul 5 09:57:50 EDT 2019

This was sent to the LNC from Starchild, and I support what he said as
well.  This would represent an internal power refocus - a decision for the
delegates.  I frankly think it is as terrible as the not-heard prior Bylaws
Committee proposal to expand the LNC to over 100 persons then consolidate
power into a small Executive Committee.  I further feel there has been
already a freezing out of the rest of the LNC with the chair effectively
treating the officers as non-officers, and the party being subtly ran by
the chair, the ED (at the direction of the chair so not a criticism of the
ED), and whoever is the current LNC favourite of the chair.

Unfair?  Maybe.  But I am not going to mince my words on what I perceive as
going on.

The fact that this was thrown on the list without the other officers being
consulted is another sign.  Was Mr. Merced at least consulted?  Or is he as
blind-sided as I am?  What about Mr. Hagan?

The chair is not the sole officer as inconvenient as that may be.

=====

Dear LNC members,

I am frankly appalled to see the message below from the new executive
director floating a major policy proposal on the LNC list, to have his boss
(the chair) start being paid at party expense. With all due respect, I
think the executive director is seriously overstepping his bounds and has
made a major breach of ethics.

The chair appoints somebody to a well-paying position, and then this person
turns around and advocates that the party start to pay the chair? It
doesn't take a Mueller report to see the huge conflict of interest in that.
Nor does it stop there – it would likewise be a conflict of interest for
LNC members to use party funds to start paying a professional salary to a
member of their own committee.

But even that doesn't reflect the full extent of the problem with this – I
don't think the Libertarian National Committee even has the authority to
make the change he's proposing in the first place. Turning the LP chair
office into a paid position is something I believe would require a bylaws
change by convention delegates, and for good reason: Such a move would be a
significant change in party operations, a major further concentration and
centralization of power at the top.

Nick Sarwark is generally doing an excellent job as chair in my view, and I
supported his reelection. But this is not about him – this is about the
structure of the party and a proposal to alter that structure in a way that
would set a terrible precedent. What would come next, paying the Secretary,
the Treasurer, the rest of the LNC, and making them full-time employees
too, putting more of our limited resources into overhead and attracting
people to our party's leadership who are in it for the money or as a career
opportunity rather than because they want to work for freedom?

This is the path toward taking power in the Libertarian Party out of the
hands of grassroots activists, and putting it in the hands of paid
professionals. Staff members are *not* elected by our membership, and
really should not even be on the LNC discussion list and debating policy
proposals in the first place, unless all LP members are able to do the
same. Paid employees are banned from being convention delegates, and there
is a good reason for that; senior staff in particular have a
disproportionate amount of control over party operations as it is.

Having been on the LNC for two terms, I'm familiar with the pattern of
committee members seeking to maintain good relations with staff in order to
have more personal influence with them and how they carry out party
operations on a day-to-day basis. This is in part because so much power is
*already* concentrated in the position of party chair, who exercises nearly
sole control over who is hired and who is let go, that other LNC members
otherwise have little sway with staff, and consequently tend to be careful
to preserve what influence they do have by seeking to stay on their good
side. This is how things have gradually gotten to the point that multiple
staffers are on the LNC list and increasingly feel empowered to inject
their personal views into LNC discussions, with the executive director now
floating a major (and I believe improper) policy proposal.

I don't want to give the impression that I think this is mainly about poor
judgement on the part of the executive director – although I do think
floating such a proposal shows poor judgement, he is also new in the job.
Probably nobody told him there's anything wrong with his weighing in like
this, and he may have seen his predecessor and other staff similarly
getting involved in policy matters. Likely he has a high opinion – probably
justified – of the chair's fundraising abilities, and may have just thought
he was offering a sensible, practical idea.

But there is a *lot* wrong with it. I strongly urge LNC members *not* to go
down this path, and further to set some institutional guidance for staff
members to limit their participation in LNC matters, for the good of the
Libertarian Party and the need to keep it a bottom-up organization, which
adheres to the highest ethical standards. The LP must not be allowed to
become another failed, top-down party like the Democrats and Republicans,
run by those who are in it for the money and the power rather than by their
grassroots members, because if that happens you can be sure it will also
move away from being a *libertarian* party.

Love & Liberty,

((( starchild )))

On Fri, Jul 5, 2019 at 7:46 AM Caryn Ann Harlos <caryn.ann.harlos at lp.org>
wrote:

> I oppose.  This is a decision for the delegates at convention.
> Additionally, considering the fact that right now our chair has been
> engaging in making enemies of particular sub-groups of libertarians and
> Libertarians, it would be particularly galling to those Libertarians.
>
> On Fri, Jul 5, 2019 at 6:00 AM Daniel Fishman via Lnc-business <
> lnc-business at hq.lp.org> wrote:
>
>> Dear LNC, As I ponder how to replace one of the best fundraisers I’ve ever
>> known, It occurs to me there is a synergistic opportunity right now.
>>
>> I have thought for a long time that the chair of the LNC should be a paid
>> position.
>>
>> There is a possibility right now to make that happen. Rather than going
>> through a hiring process to replace a head of development, I’d like to put
>> the chair to work full time right now as a contractor. I believe a paid
>> chair can focus full time on major donors and issuing press releases --
>> two
>> things I would like to see us improve on immediately.
>>
>> Lauren and I talked about the need for a paid chair a few weeks ago, and
>> the serendipitous timing of the current Chair’s availability concurrent
>> with the personnel needs of the organization leads me to believe the time
>> for this proposal is now.
>>
>> I am proposing that the LNC offer the chair a contract to become a
>> contractor of the LNC. In return for this the chair would undertake the
>> duties of major donor maintenance and recruitment, public appearances and
>> press secretary as required.
>>
>> By making this a contract position, the LNC can terminate the contract
>> with
>> 30 days notice if there is no longer an organizational need. This also
>> doesn't change the nature of the position for future chairs, which would
>> probably need to be done as a change to the bylaws.
>>
>> The positives are immediately apparent. A chair who can focus on the
>> business of the party, fundraising and appearances, is critical to a
>> professional and consistent message.  A chair who can support the
>> affiliates through meetings and advise is a chair who is growing the
>> party.
>> And a chair who is able to focus 100% of their professional effort to the
>> job is an asset to the party.
>>
>> Recognizing the role the chair has in the appointment of the Executive
>> Director I hesitated to make the case -- but this is such a unique
>> confluence of events, I wanted to at least present the LNC with the
>> opportunity for you all to give it thumbs up or down.
>> ---
>> Daniel Fishman
>> Executive Director
>> The Libertarian Party
>> Join Us <http://www.lp.org/join>
>>
>
>
> --
>
> *  In Liberty,*
>
> *Libertarian Party and Libertarian National Committee Secretary *- Caryn.Ann.
> Harlos at LP.org <Caryn.Ann.Harlos at LP.org> or Secretary at LP.org.
> *Chair, LP Historical Preservation Committee* - LPedia at LP.org
> Call me at 561.523.2250 and follow my public figure page at
> facebook.com/pinkflameofliberty/
>
> =========================================================================
> Peaceful Commerce With All Nations * Non-interventionism * Re-Legalize All
> Drugs * End Government Intrusion In The Bedroom * Repeal All Gun Laws *
> Abolish All Taxation * Sound, Free-market Money * Abolish The Fed * End
> Corporate & Individual Welfare * Abolish The IRS and Repeal the Income Tax
> * Privatize Transportation Infrastructure * Free-market Emergency Services
> * Open Migration * Transfer Government Schools To The Private Sector *
> Eliminate Regulation *
>
> *VOTE LIBERTARIAN * 800-ELECT-US or http://www.LP.org <http://www.lp.org/>*
> =========================================================================
>

-- 

*  In Liberty,*

*Libertarian Party and Libertarian National Committee Secretary *- Caryn.Ann.
Harlos at LP.org <Caryn.Ann.Harlos at LP.org> or Secretary at LP.org.
*Chair, LP Historical Preservation Committee* - LPedia at LP.org
Call me at 561.523.2250 and follow my public figure page at
facebook.com/pinkflameofliberty/

=========================================================================
Peaceful Commerce With All Nations * Non-interventionism * Re-Legalize All
Drugs * End Government Intrusion In The Bedroom * Repeal All Gun Laws *
Abolish All Taxation * Sound, Free-market Money * Abolish The Fed * End
Corporate & Individual Welfare * Abolish The IRS and Repeal the Income Tax
* Privatize Transportation Infrastructure * Free-market Emergency Services
* Open Migration * Transfer Government Schools To The Private Sector *
Eliminate Regulation *

*VOTE LIBERTARIAN * 800-ELECT-US or http://www.LP.org <http://www.lp.org/>*
=========================================================================