Republican Liberty Caucus chapters in at least nine states will be holding meetings in the coming month. They include:

Alabama: The Alabama RLC affiliate will hold a meeting in the coming weeks. Please contact Stephen Gordon for details.

Arizona: The Arizona RLC affiliate will hold a meeting in the coming weeks. Please contact Ken Rineer for details.

District of Columbia: DC Republican City Council candidates Jim DeMartino (Ward 6) and Tim Day (Ward (5) will present and answer questions at the RLC-DC meeting on Monday, August 30, along with Ward 1 School Board candidate Patrick Mara. The event will take place in the Community Room K at City Vista Condominiums (12th Floor), 475 K Street NW, equidistant from Gallery Place/Chinatown and Mount Vernon Square/Convention Center metros at 7pm. RSVP on Facebook.

Florida: The Florida RLC will have an outreach table, make a short presentation about the RLC and hold an informal RLC update and discussion get-together in conjunction with the Campaign for Liberty’s Summit at the Rosen Centre in Orlando. The informal RLC statewide meeting will be held at 12:30-1:30 pm on Saturday, August 12 at the RLC outreach booth at the Summit. Also, RLCers and friends who are not attending the Saturday night banquet are welcome to join us for dinner offsite, but nearby! Pick up the details at the RLC booth. See you there!

Indiana: The state RLC affiliate will hold its Convention at George’s Neighborhood Grill (6935 Lake Plaza Dr) in Indianapolis on Saturday, September 25. The keynote speaker will be Attorney General Greg Zoeller. RSVP on Facebook.

Maine: The Maine RLC will host its first annual Calvin Coolidge Clambake with John Fund of The Wall Street Journal on Thursday, August 26 in Portland. Learn more at http://www.rlc.org/2010/08/08/maine-rlc-hosts-clambake/.

New York: The RLC will host a kickoff meeting on Tuesday, August 17 at 7pm at the HOUNDSTOOTH PUB (520 8TH AVE – W37 St) in Manhattan. There will be a cash bar and free food. RSVP on Facebook.

Virginia: The Northern Virginia RLC will host a happy hour in Arlington in late August. Contact Mitchell Bemos for details. The Central Virginia RLC will host a meeting on Thursday, August 19 from 6:30pm to 8:00pm at Isis, Inc. (2727 Enterprise Pkwy, Suite 100) in Richmond, VA. This is the first meeting of the RLCCV following elections of chapter officers. RLCCV will discuss our goals with the RLC and welcome new members and all who are interested in becoming members of the RLCCV. Please RSVP by Thursday, 8/19 at 1pm. RSVP on Facebook.

Utah: An immigration debate hosted by the Utah RLC chapter will occur and will feature key policy leaders in the state. Exact date/location TBA. Contact Julian Babbitt for details.

On Saturday evening, the Republican Liberty Caucus of Virginia hosted its annual Convention in Arlington. The featured guest was former New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson. This was the first RLCVA Convention in northern VA, since the 2009 Convention was held in Richmond.

New Officers include:

George Primbs, Woodbridge: Chair
Steven Latimer, Charlottesville; Vice-Chair
Cindy Trautz, Sterling; Secretary
Cliff Dunn, Newport News; Treasurer

At-Large Board members:
Mitchell Bemos, Arlington
Eric Brescia, Arlington
Christopher David Pille
Rick Sincere, Charlottesville

The RLCVA website is http://www.RLCVA.org/. The Caucus recently endorsed Michael McPadden for Congress in Virginia’s Fifth District. The primary is coming up in June.

Overall, it was a very successful event. Below are some photos from the event.

Gov. Gary Johnson discusses issues with a future candidate.

Members look on during the business session.

Gov. Johnson speaks with Matthew Berry, running for Congress in VA 09.

New Chairman George Primbs (far left) and other members look on during the business session.

Governor Johnson while he was speaking to the audience.

The Republican Liberty Caucus of Virginia has endorsed Michael McPadden’s campaign for Congress in District 5.

The district is vast, conservative, and rural and is currently represented by Thomas Perriello (D). Mr. McPadden is locked in an 8-way primary which will end when Republican primary voters decide who to nominate to face Perriello in November.

Michael McPadden is a leader, a military veteran, and a father. He has been married for 30 years and has a distinguished career. At his website, McPadden explains, “Our campaign has a few core principles that we will never compromise on … Our vision is liberty; Our philosophy is the Declaration of Independence; and our model for government is the Constitution.”

McPadden’s issues page explains that he supports individual liberty, limited government, sound money, and the rule of law. How refreshing!

Former Rep. Virgil Goode, a longtime RLC favorite, would be proud of a candidate like Michael McPadden. The Virginia RLC is, too, so we’re supporting his bid to win the June 8 primary.

MAINE

Republican Liberty Caucus, Maine chapter, will hold a free public information meeting Saturday, April 10, at noon at Portland Airport Hilton Garden Inn, 145 Jetport Access Road off I-95 (Exit 46). The meeting will introduce the national volunteer grassroots movement of libertarian-oriented Republicans and its goals.

The meeting is free. Lunch is optional from the hotel menu. Membership applications will be accepted at the meeting.

Dues-paid members will be eligible to participate in the RLC-ME State Convention on May 7, which will be held in Portland concurrent with the Maine State Republican Committee Convention. Dues-paid members can vote endorsement of a gubernatorial candidate before the primary and for RLC Maine Chapter officers. Dues-paid members are also eligible to attend regional and national RLC conventions.

Local chapters can be formed with a minimum of five dues-paid members who apply to the state executive board. Please attend and learn about this grassroots movement which is independent of any official party committee and committed to individual liberty.

Hilton Garden Inn by the Portland Jet Port
Saturday April 10th 2010
12noon to 2:30 PM
145 Jetport Boulevard, Portland, Maine, USA 04102
RSVP on Facebook

TENNESSEE

It is time for Tennesseans to have our biennial convention to elect officers for 2010. In order for the our group to grow and be effective, we need people willing to commit to the time and energy required to make an impact.

Please mark your calendar for April 24 at Doughhead Pizza (124 Harrison Ln.) in Soddy Daisy. The event will occur from 11am to 1pm.

If you are interested in running for a position, please contact Gregg. The future of the RLCTN depends upon you! You can RSVP to the event on Facebook.

VIRGINIA

The Republican Liberty Caucus of Virginia is hosting former New Mexico Governor Gary E. Johnson on Saturday, May 1 at 4:30pm at Ireland’s Four Courts, which is located less than a block away from the Courthouse Metro Station (Orange Line) in Arlington, VA. Parking in the area is somewhat limited, so please arrive a bit early to allow time to find parking. Ireland’s Four Courts is allowing us to have a private back room for free, so please be prepared to buy some drinks or appetizers (or dinner) to help us support their business.

To help propel our small organization forward, we are requesting a small $10 donation from attendees who are not members of the Republican Liberty Caucus. Those who are members (including out-of-state members) can enter free of charge. RLC dues payment is available at http://www.RLC.org/, or dues can be paid in person on May 1.

We look forward to seeing you there. You can also RSVP to the event on Facebook.

Yesterday, the Board of the Republican Liberty Caucus of Virginia voiced its support of SB 66, a bill which prohibits different types of discrimination in public employment — including discrimination against same-sex attracted workers. The bill defines “sexual orientation” as a person’s actual or perceived heterosexuality, bisexuality, homosexuality, or gender identity or expression.

Several Virginia RLC members have been vocal on the issue, including David Lampo, who penned an op-ed in The Richmond-Times Dispatch, and RLCVA Board member Rick Sincere, who spoke at a press conference organized by Equality Virginia on the bill’s passage.

Said Lampo in his op-ed, “… Republicans could lose it all again if we let our party go back to the culture wars and religious extremism that some in our party seem to relish. Not only must we resist the divisive urges of the more extreme elements of our party; we need to restore the image of our party to one of social tolerance and support for individual liberty, two of the important values it was built on.”

He continued, “One of the ways to do this is to implement a policy of employment nondiscrimination for all government employees, including gays and lesbians. Virginia currently has no statute establishing a statewide policy against discrimination in employment for any public employees.”

Rick Sincere, a longtime RLC member, spoke on the issue:

The RLC received press hits in the Washington Post, Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Fredricksburg Free-Lance Star. Governor Bob McDonnell has stated repeatedly that he opposes discrimination in state employment, including discrimination based on sexual orientation — affirming the RLC’s position on the issue.

by Aaron Biterman

I live in Virginia and followed the race of Governor-elect Bob McDonnell fairly closely. An article in Politico last week explains that some Republican Party strategists now believe that they have a winning strategy for 2010.

They’re calling it the McDonnell strategy.

Politico’s Jonathan Martin describes the strategy: “[R]un on economic policy, downplay divisive cultural issues, present an upbeat tone, target independent voters and focus on Democratic-controlled Washington — all without attacking President Barack Obama personally.”

McDonnell is a far-right social conservative, so it only made sense for him to downplay his religious and social views — which (I believe) are far outside of the mainstream. (Although his views probably coincide with many Virginians.)

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to develop a strategy for McDonnell that courts the largest base of the electorate (Independent voters) or, as I said, to downplay his true views on social issues.

Those were obviously successful points in the strategy developed by the McDonnell team.  Another positive point was that Bob McDonnell stayed focused on the issues: transportation, jobs, and budget, mostly.  As Haley Barbour has said, these issues are the issues that Virginians were talking about around the kitchen table.

But, despite victory for McDonnell in Virginia, there’s one base of supporters — and one strategic point — that the McDonnell campaign missed the boat on: Independents and Republicans that have a decisive libertarian streak.

There is an entire base of voters that are tired of politics-as-usual and will only support candidates that will roll back the nation’s deficit — which means voting for no more spending and voting to cut ineffective government programs.

It’s somewhat obvious why McDonnell did not court these voters: Virginia doesn’t have that many of them.

Case in point, Dr. Ron Paul received just five percent of the vote in Virginia’s 2008 Presidential primary, taking around 22,000 votes.  Contrast that total with the second-place finisher, Mike Huckabee, who took 41 percent, or nearly 200,000 votes.

Huckabee, of course, has moderate views on economics, but is socially conservative.  Bob McDonnell is much more of a Huckabee populist than a Ron Paul constitutionalist.

If the Republican Party is going to develop a national strategy to succeed in elections, its candidates should elevate discourse by discussing real political issues — “back to basics” fundamentals that fall under the rubric of constitutionally limited government, individual liberty, free-market economics, and the rule of law.

Candidates that combine these core issues with local concerns (jobs, economy, and even more local issues that vary by state or district) will be more likely to succeed than candidates that follow the populist approach of Bob McDonnell.

The main flaw with the McDonnell strategy is that it appears McDonnell has no principles whatsoever.  So, while he did win an election in a state that had been trending Democrat, Virginians now have a Governor-elect that never outlined his core philosophy of governance.

At a time when most states are facing budget shortages, the unemployment rate continues to climb, and the dollar continues to erode in value, Republican Party candidates that want to win must tell the truth to voters.  Hopefully that truth is their commitment to vote against more spending and to cut waste and redundancy from government.

In the 2006 and 2008 elections, Republicans that were not shy about their belief in limited government were overwhelmingly successful at the polls.

This is evidenced by Ron Paul’s strong showing in state primaries as well as elections in which Tom McClintock (R-CA), Peter Roskam (R-IL), and Paul Broun (R-GA) won races in notable Congressional upsets — in the Midwest, the South, and the Left Coast.

Will the Republican Party adopt Bob McDonnell’s flawed election model in other states?  If it does, Republicans may not succeed.

The best strategy for the Republican Party is to look back to Ronald Reagan and Barry Goldwater for the healthy dose of skepticism about government’s ability to solve societal problems that once defined the Republican Party — and still defines its core base.

Republican candidates with this philosophy — that government cannot solve all ills in society, nor should it — who have financial support will succeed in 2010.

Another election gone by, and it turned out quite well for the Republican Party overall and the Republican Liberty Caucus in specific.

Republicans elected new Governors in New Jersey and Virginia. Neither of the candidates, Chris Christie or Bob McDonnell, was endorsed by the Republican Liberty Caucus, but we believe they will provide a better vision for their states than their respective opponents.

In Virginia, voters elected State Senator Ken Cuccinelli to the post of Attorney General. Cuccinelli is a social and fiscal conservative, and some RLC members have been offended by his social conservatism. Still, he seems to be one of the few politicians in the state that understands the concept of limited government, and has a voting record consistent with the RLC’s goals. His new position elevates Cuccinelli to one of the most high-level advocates of limited government in the country.

RLC members in Virginia worked hard to help Cuccinelli win the nomination for Attorney General, and many contributed to his campaign directly. Cuccinelli has said that he will not enforce laws he deems unconstitutional. In 2007, Cuccinelli took the time to drive several hours to address a small group of RLC members. View his speech to RLC members at YouTube.

In the RLC’s biggest victory of the night, RLC National Committeeman Dan Halloran was elected to the New York City Council in a Queens district that leans heavily Democrat. Halloran is also the state Chair of the Republican Liberty Caucus in New York. He worked tirelessly to become elected and will join just four other Republicans on the 51-member City Council.

The RLC also had some other significant victories in New Jersey and New Hampshire. Incumbent Michael Patrick Carroll, who the RLC discovered earlier in the year, was re-elected to his New Jersey House seat. Perhaps the most successful liberty-oriented politician in the state, Michael Doherty, was elected to an open seat in the New Jersey State Senate. The RLC profiled Doherty in an earlier edition of our newsletter.

In the Granite State, Jim Forsythe led a team of liberty-loving Republicans that successfully helped three candidates obtain victory. Political newcomer Lynne Blankenbeker was elected in a special election to the New Hampshire House, and RLC members Phil Greazzo and Cameron DeJong were elected to Alderman and Selectman positions in Manchester, New Hampshire.

Several non-endorsed candidates with strong libertarian leanings were also successful on Election night, including Kim Rafferty, who was elected to the Birmingham City Council in Alabama, and Shaun Kenney, who was elected to a County Supervisor in Fluvanna County, Virginia. In Minnesota, RLC member Luther Stueland won a position on the Moorhead City Council and Patricia Barnum was elected to the West St. Paul ISD 127 School Board.  Additionally, Lisa Marie Coppoletta has advanced to a run-off in a race for San Marcos City Council in Texas.

Unfortunately, TABOR ballot initiatives — which would tie revenue increases to population and inflation growth to keep spending in check — were defeated by voters in Washington state and Maine. The gay marriage ballot initiative in Maine passed, overturning gay marriage in the state, while voters in Washington state chose to extend rights for gays and lesbians.

The nine victories for RLC-endorsed candidates this fall combined with the five spring victories (in Arizona, Illinois, Massachusetts, and Texas) have resulted in a very successful off-year election for liberty-focused Republicans.

Congratulations are extended to all of the above candidates, our other endorsed candidates, our supporters, and the folks that helped our endorsed candidates succeed.

Complete RLC election results are available here.

A Republican Liberty Caucus-endorsed candidate for House of Delegates in Virginia was endorsed by The Washington Post last week.

Eric Brescia, who is running in a longtime Democrat stronghold in Arlington, Virginia, impressed The Post. Brescia, who is young, articulate, and has strong libertarian leanings, has run a campaign that may well fit his far-left district during an economic crisis due in part to overspending: his campaign emphasized policies that are socially tolerant and fiscally conservative.

The Post said, “[Brescia] is exactly what the Republicans need in Northern Virginia: an independent-minded thinker who has fresh and specific ideas for how to save money in health care and make government work better.”

Brescia is running for an open seat and will face Democrat and Green Party opponents. He spoke to Republican Liberty Caucus members in August at a Republican Liberty Caucus of Northern Virginia meeting.

Notably, the entire campaign platform, media relations, and grassroots effort was organized almost entirely by Republican Liberty Caucus members.

In addition to traditional conservative positions on economics, Brescia has also bucked the party line by supporting civil liberties, equal treatment for gays and lesbians, and fair treatment of immigrants — positions he shares with many RLC members.

Some photos from Republican Liberty Caucus members and activists from the month of August (2009):

RLC members in northern Virginia had a meeting on August 20.  It featured two former RLC-endorsed Congressional candidates (Amit Singh and Vern McKinley) and a 2009 RLC-endorsed candidate for Delegate, Eric Brescia.  The Virginia RLC was re-chartered at the Republican Party of Virginia Convention in May.

Kentucky RLC Coordinator Michael Moreland (right) chats with the son of RLC Advisory Board member Ron Paul, Dr. Rand Paul at the Jim and Mary Bunning Family Picnic hosted by the Campbell County GOP. Dr. Rand Paul is running for the open Kentucky U.S. Senate seat.

RLC members from the DC and Virginia affiliates gathered in a studio in DC on August 9 to film an introduction to the Republican Liberty Caucus that will soon appear at RLC.org. From left is Aaron Biterman, Mitchell Bemos, Matthew Gagnon, and Nena Bartlett.

On Saturday, August 15, the Republican Liberty Caucus of Nebraska held its first-ever summer meeting.

Nebraska RLC Vice Chair, Jon Tucker, of Omaha, discussed the many faces of the liberty movement and helped RLC members discover where we fit in. The answers were not entirely clear, although it was clear by the end of the discussion that Nebraska RLC’ers are committed to continuing their efforts to promote their foundational principles of liberty within the Republican Party.  Mr. Tucker is also in the process of forming a regional Republican Liberty Caucus representing the Omaha area.

Former Nebraska Republican Party Chairman Mark Quandahl (left) and Nebraska’s Republican National Committeeman, Pete Ricketts (right), fielded questions from the audience during a panel discussion.  Both men welcomed the involvement of Nebraska RLC members.

Quandahl expressed appreciation for the enthusiasm of the RLC’ers at Nebraska’s 2008 GOP Convention and Ricketts encouraged members to stay involved.

Nebraska RLC Secretary, Amy Haberman of Papillion, provided delegates with an overview of the Nebraska Republican Party and its structure. Amy’s presentation emphasized the importance of getting involved locally.

According to Nebraska RLC Vice Chair Jon Tucker, “All we need to do now is increase our numbers to increase our impact of the party.  I can’t wait to do this again next year, but I will not wait until then to find other opportunities for us to get together to grow and educate each other and those around us about the principles of the Nebraska Republican Liberty Caucus.”

By all accounts, the meeting was a success.  Members learned the GOP state structure, how to create a PAC, how to encourage others to join our efforts, who others in the liberty movement are, history of the liberty movement, and an introduction of how technology can impact the political process.

A very special thank you to Laura Ebke, Nebraska RLC Chair, who organized the meeting.

Earlier in the month, RLC chapter leaders from the DC, Maryland, and Virginia RLC affiliates gathered in the nation’s capital to discuss strategy for the 2010 election cycle.

Below is a photo from the event.  Thus far in 2009, the RLC has chartered new state chapter affiliates in Maryland, Alabama, Missouri, Tennessee, and Washington. Additionally, RLC chapters that were previously inactive (at least for a short period) have been revived in New Hampshire, Texas, and Virginia.

Front row, from left: Dave Nalle (National Chair), Aaron Biterman (National Press), Brett Guidry (DC Treasurer), Nancy Sellers (DC Secretary); back row, from left: Daniel Kamerling (guest), Rick Sincere (Virginia At-Large Board member), Steven Latimer (Virginia Vice-Chair), Matt Gagnon (Virginia Chair), Dr. Scott Pearson (guest), John Orlando (Maryland Chair), and Stephen Wright (Maryland Treasurer) plus his wife.