The Ron Paul r3VOLution Returns to California
Liberty was alive and well in Long Beach over President's day weekend as the Libertarian Party of California convention brought freedom lovers from all over the Golden State and some from across the nation. The impressive attendance, and equally impressive slate of speakers and events, were not nearly as impressive as the overall feeling of cooperation, especially when compared to the infighting plaguing other state organizations. California's unique Party culture, a reflection of the size and diversity of the state itself, allows for the individuals in the party to work on issue coalitions, with people alternating between voting together and against each other, oftentimes item to item or amendment to amendment. Though not completely without incident, the majority of disagreements were respectfully debated and resolved, ultimately setting the tone for the members working together to achieve liberty over the upcoming year.
Dave Smith kicked off the event on Friday night, driving home the importance of cooperation in the battle against the encroaching state and encouraging bold, honest messaging, and was followed over the weekend by author and “lunatic farmer” Joel Salatin, former Congressman Justin Amash, writer/commentator and activist Hannah Cox, LNC Chair Whitney Bilyeu, and 2020 Libertarian Candidate for President Jo Jorgensen. The speakers were all seen in the halls of the hotel answering questions and having deep conversations with attendees throughout the convention, and many attendees had their photo taken by Avens O'Brien. Judge Jim Gray was in attendance and moderated a debate for LNC Chair between candidates Tony D'Orazio, Steve Dasbach, and Angela McArdle.
The platform committee report was the first order of business on Saturday, and a collaboration between members old and new allowed the delegates to remove the current platform and replace it with the National Party Platform. Over one hundred motions were combined into a single bylaw change, simplifying the entire process, which had been previously attempted in 2019.
A tremendous amount of attention was paid to local activism and libertarian candidacy, creating a healthy discussion between members and counties they generally only interact with online. Several candidates were endorsed unanimously by the voting body, including Michael Lema for Hayward City Council At-Large, Cheyenne Strawn for Hanford City Council District E, Fransisco Ramirez for Hanford City Council District D, Amanda Saltray for Hanford City Council District A, Joe Dehn for United States House of Representatives District 17, Rodgir Cohen for California State Assembly District 50, and Kelly Carden for Kern County Board of Supervisors District 2.
The Medical Freedom Initiative in the City of Los Angeles was also endorsed, and David Bowers (Los Angeles) presented a resolution to support the peaceful efforts of Canadians to regain freedoms lost and condemn the actions of the Canadian Government against its own people’s efforts to ask for their own freedom back. Another resolution that was adopted was presented by Starchild (San Francisco) that expressed solidarity and support for Traci Austin who is facing charges for allegedly helping people avoid taxes and called for her charges to be dropped. “Even if she did everything the Feds accuse her of, she has done nothing wrong and is in fact providing a valuable public service.”
State Executive Committee elections were another mildly contentious part of the event, but the organization and candidate quality put forth by the Mises Caucus allowed them to get their entire slate, which included non-Mises members, elected to serve on the board and at the National Party. The new officers are Secretary Chris Edgar, Northern Area Coordinator Adrian F Malagon, and Central Area Coordinator Matthew Ryan Butts. Michael Lema, Jia Christopher, Gary Alvstad, Jessica Tewksbury, and Chris Minoletti are all serving as At-Large, with Victoria Lapacek and Terry Miller as Alternates and Carrie Eiler became the new LNC Region Rep with Joshua Clark as Alternate.
Petitions circulated for a range of issues, including the City of LA anti-mandate initiative, statewide psilocybin decriminalization, and another hot topic this year: school choice. The Advocates for Self-government had a booth set up outside of the room where business was held, as well as Ranked Choice Voting, and the School Choice Initiative. The Historical Preservation committee had a fascinating display set up which featured the first California State newsletter from 1972.
Overall, there was a greater energy and increased participation and attendance over some recent years and discussions of activism and the future prospects were reminiscent of the Liberty movement during the 2008 and 2012 Presidential cycles. A fairly large group of delegates from that grassroots era have now made the LP California their home and many “old guard” Libertarian Party members have welcomed the enthusiasm and activism they are bringing with them. California Libertarians have a wonderful opportunity to increase the influence of the party, to get more candidates elected, and continue working together to spread the message of and achieve personal freedom and individual liberty.