Situation Report: Fifty-three days to D.C.
Many things have happened in and outside of the Libertarian Party that have shifted the momentum against the Mises Caucus, but there's still much work to be done. How can you help?
Dear Friends,
It’s been eleven days since we published our last Situation Report on the Libertarian Party. It covered the resignation of the Convention Oversight Committee Chair, Adrian Malagon, as well as the resignation of his girlfriend Meredith Hays from the same committee. Both of these LNC members resigned from the committee charged with making the convention a success and neither of them even plan to attend the convention in D.C.
Since then, a member of the Credentials Committee has also resigned.
Treasurer Todd Hagopian, who has announced that he will not seek another term at the D.C. convention, released very late1 financial reports for January and February, showing a dire financial situation. He also sent out a slide presentation summarizing how bad a financial state the Libertarian National Committee is in. He tried to get an emergency meeting of the LNC by March 30, but it was derailed by the Secretary’s parliamentary wrangling. At the current rate of monthly losses (~$45K per month in one recent month), the Libertarian National Committee will be out of spendable cash prior to the opening gavel.
Attorneys from Veritas Law representing at least one member of the Libertarian National Committee and over fifty members of the Libertarian Party sent a demand letter to Angela McArdle, along with all other members of the Libertarian National Committee as well as to Oliver Hall, Special Counsel to the Libertarian National Committee.
The Treasurer has started a motion to rescind a vote to spend $5,000 in supporting Andrew Chadderdon’s attempts to overrule the election of delegates to the national convention at last month’s Michigan convention. It already has enough co-sponsors to go to a vote, even though the Secretary, Caryn Ann Harlos, has claimed it to be out of order in some way.
Angela McArdle fired the last development staffer, Luke Troxell, on Easter weekend. That ensures that Mr. Troxell does not have health benefits for April. While he was not effective in his role, firing someone on a holiday seems to be cruelty for cruelty’s sake.
LNC Member Mark Tuniewicz separately called for Angela McArdle’s resignation, along with the resignation of other board members who have engaged in malfeasance or incompetence that has brought the party to the brink of financial ruin. The continued stonewalling and unprofessional mistreatment of board members and staff has even caused him to consider joining in a derivative lawsuit to force the board to follow the rules.
There’s a lot more going on, but that’s quite a bit for a Monday morning.
What can you do to help?
You could sign up to help stop the Destruction of the Libertarian Party. Join over eighty other members in fixing what has been broken.
You could forward this email to Libertarians you know who may not know the crisis the party is facing.
You could encourage people who have previously been Libertarian Party officers, staff, or experienced in managing nonprofit organizations to stand for election to the Libertarian National Committee at the convention in Washington, D.C. at the end of May.
You could start getting to know Mark Rutherford, an experienced attorney and former Vice Chair of the Libertarian National Committee, who is running for Chair to put the party back on a professional course.
With the collapse of the Mises Caucus, it is important for people who care about the future of the Libertarian Party to be prepared to work together starting on June 1 with a professional and courteous board to reclaim our place as an effective 50-state political party that is growing and providing a fresh alternative to an American public that is sick of the two old parties.
Yours in liberty,
Nick
If Mr. Hagopian had released these reports in the month immediately following, as is required by both policy and custom, the membership and the LNC would not be caught flat-footed by the decline instead of being forced into an emergency.