We should invest in the things that work. We should not invest in things that fail unless they deliver secondary benefits. We should also invest in things that we have not tried, things that we will need to build a future of peace, freedom, and prosperity. Spending by the national committee on national activities: First, the core activities of the…
Posts published in April 2023
“What should we do” is the new op-ed column of ThirdPartyWatch. “What Should We Do” is open to writers of all third parties and independent political groups. Individual articles should identify challenges or advocate for particular solutions. A reasonable column might be five hundred or a thousand words long, but we are open to columns that are significantly longer or…
This is the first of several letters discussing how the LNC should spend its money. In this letter, I discuss sources of income and the concepts of direct and indirect costs. Direct and indirect costs are fundamental for understanding what you are doing when you spend money. If you already know about indirect costs, you may find this topic to…
I wrote this for Libertarians, but the analysis is equally true for every other third party. The purpose of a political party is The only way we can forward our cause as a political party is to run people for office. Some candidates will bring the Libertarian word to the public. Other candidates will win election and serve in office,…
I am pleased to report that the LNC, having recently appropriated $12,000 for Michigan Trademark legal action, has made a further step. It appropriated $1500 for Arkansas ballot access. In other good news, the Montana law to impose Top-Two for one election to one office is apparently going down in flames, as there was a negative committee vote, 1-17. The…
Posted by George Phillies. Written by Anon The Mises Caucus came into the Libertarian Party (LP) with promises of large amounts of revenue, new members, and big whale donors. However, almost a year later, none of their promises have borne any fruit. In fact, the LP has continued to lose money, staff, and power, coming into a critical election year.…
I return to a basic theme: The purpose of a political party is: To Advance its Agenda via Political Action. To run Candidates for Office and Win Elections. To Use Electoral Victory to Put Its Program into Effect. What sort of candidates can we run for office? I’m going to identify four levels of candidate commitment: The paper candidate. The…
These letters were originally written for libertarians, but with slight edits are equally true for any third party In previous letters, I discussed activities particularly appropriate for performance by national and state groups. I have also discussed activities that every Libertarian group should perform, most notably incitement of members to become activists and candidates. In this letter, I consider activities…
These letters were originally written specifically for the Libertarian Party, but with very slight edits would be equally useful for any other third party. Tasks for State Committees As I have previously said, I am advancing a strategy for the Libertarian Party. Part of the proposed strategy refers to what your community and state parties are doing. Persuading your local…