Founded in 1991, the Republican Liberty Caucus works to advance the principles of limited government, free markets and individual liberty within the Republican Party.

Throughout 2008, the RLC of Florida has been doing its part to rebuild the party with practical action. Florida RLCers expanded its network, labored in the primaries, registered new Republicans, lobbied the legislature, endorsed candidates, participated in educational forums, provided speakers for GOP clubs, worked on general election campaigns and added its members to Republican Executive Committees around the state.

The year started in the midst of the Republican primaries, where a former national chair of the RLC, Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX), made a respectable stand, breaking fundraising records and bringing new people into the Republican Party. Individual RLCers mobilized for the Paul campaign, with RLCFL Treasurer Mark Cross running the campaign in our state, by organizing rallies and signing up new Republicans by the hundreds. The Paul campaign brought in many new, mostly young, Republicans and the RLC welcomed them, even when other elements of our party did not.

Picking up new members in parts of the state where the RLC has not traditionally been active, new Meetups were launched in Lee County as well as Tallahassee and Jacksonville.

The Jacksonville Meetup – using the informal moniker the RLC of Northeast Florida – in particular brought new energy to the RLCFL and under its chair Will Pitts took the lead in creating a beautiful new RLC outreach brochure now used across the state. Also, in May, Steve Burden of Lutz launched this vastly improved upgrade of the RLCFL website. The RLCFL’s state executive committee was expanded to improve representation for the more geographically diverse membership.

Arguably the most important ongoing project of the RLCFL is its annual lobbying trip to Tallahassee. Unlike in previous years (such as here and here), the RLC cannot claim a significant legislative victory in 2008. However, the effort to pass a Taxpayer Protection Amendment – a TABOR-like constitutional amendment requiring voter approval to increase spending outside certain limits – moved forward, failing to make it to the ballot by only two votes of the Florida Taxation and Budget Reform Commission.

However, the RLC did not give up. Having helped promote and participating in the pre-vote Americans for Prosperity forum on TPA under the direction of RLCer Adam Guillette, RLCer John Hallman held a ‘what next?’ forum on the issue in June under the auspices of his new vehicle the Florida Taxpayers Union, a National Taxpayers Union affiliate. Again, RLCers took leadership positions in promoting and participating in the event. It was here the National Federation of Independent Businesses made its announcement that it would seek a citizen referendum on TPA. The fat lady hasn’t sung just yet on this one.

Besides the AFP and FTU forums, individual affiliates hosted several educational speakers across the state. In January of 2008, RLCFL Secretary Philip Blumel kicked it off with his “GOP and the libertarian vote” talk in Miami. Over the course of the year, local RLC affiliates hosted or co-hosted talks by Foundation for Economic Education President Larry Reed, libertarian physician Bob Sussman, James Madison Institute policy director Bob Sanchez as well as Adam Guillette, John Hallman and others.

For many, however, the arrival of Ron Paul in Boca Raton for the January primary debates held at Florida Atlantic University was the highlight. The post-debate rally near the campus was among the most wildly enthusiastic celebrations of liberty that most of us will ever get to see. Again, RLCers including National RLC Board member Steven Talcott Smith were among the chief organizers. RLCFL secretary Philip Blumel spoke at the event.

At least two Florida RLCers published books in 2008, including Jupiter’s Bob Burg and Naples’ Bob Levy. Levy was also the subject of a new book after the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the individual right to keep and bear arms in the DC vs. Heller case of which Levy was chief counsel. Levy has since been tapped to Chair the libertarian Cato Institute in Washington, DC.

Several RLCers and RLC-endorsed candidates ran in the primary and general elections. In the Florida legislature, two of the five RLC-endorsed candidates won their seats – Rich Workman (D30) and Lake Ray (D17).  RLCers Bruce Reichert and Alan Burton won non-partisan seats on the Collier County and Volusia County Soil & Water Boards, respectively. At least two RLCers were elected to the RPOF state committee. For the full RLC election results nationwide, see here.

In the run-up to the elections, the RLC sponsored an ‘Adopt-a-Republican’ effort to direct support to deserving Republican candidates.

With the election finally over, the RLC was quick to start the rebuilding process of the demoralized GOP. Much of the party had – often quite blindly - embraced spending, inflation and war and the rank-and-file were disappointed and even disillusioned by the results.

The RLC encouraged and aided reform-minded activists to join their local Republican Executive Committees and distributed and explained the complicated paperwork to do so. More friends of the RLC than ever are now REC members across the state. This has already begun to express itself in various ways, such as a prominent RLC presence at the Hillsborough County Lincoln Day dinner.

Also, RLCFL board member Eric Wall now runs the Bay County Republican Party website and also writes for Red County and State of Sunshine weblogs. To top it off, RLC Treasurer and Republican Party of Florida state committeeman Mark Cross announced his campaign to run for state chair of the GOP.

There were also some hiccups in 2008. The elections, of course, but also some pushback from intolerant elements of the Republican Party who felt threatened by the reawakening of limited government activists of the party that had abandoned them over the last decade. Also, in an unfortunate incident, someone posted offensive material on one of our affiliate Meetup websites.

But these are growing pains, as the Republican Liberty Caucus is indeed growing. To improve our organization, Woody Engle along with Lisa Bullion and Mark Cross and others have revamped the RLCFL’s by-laws, subject to membership approval at the March 27-28 convention in Jacksonville.

This recap can be found on the RLCFL website, here.

To become involved in your local RLCFL affiliate, click here.