|
In 2019, the Republican dominated Texas Legislature imposed filing fees on Libertarian candidates. Libertarians have lobbied and filed lawsuits to overturn those filing fees. In the mean time, the Libertarian Booster PAC is preparing to raise funds to cover the cost of candidate filing fees win Williamson County. In 2019, the Libertarian Booster PAC paid $10,250 of the filing fees for Texas Libertarian candidates. Click here for more information or to help out. 
0 Comments
Draft website for Virginia candidates: https://template2019.weebly.com/ Former candidate Mark Lewis website (from2019) Virginia resources page: https://www.libertarianboosterpac.org/virginia-resources.html#/ Hello Virginia Libertarians!
In 2019, I (Wes Benedict) helped several Libertarian candidates for House of Delegates in Virginia. Things I helped with: filing paperwork collecting petition signatures (I personally collected signatures for a few candidates) filing campaign finance reports provided websites provided yard signs provided bumper stickers provided rack cards provided door hangers For 2021: I'm not sure what resources we'll be able to provide in 2021. Likely I'll be able to help with many of the things above. However, it's unlikely I'll be able to travel to Virginia to help collect petition signatures. Additionally, instead of providing campaign materials for free, I'll likely require some cost sharing. So, instead of providing yard signs for free, I may provide yard signs where the candidate pays 2/3, and the pac pays 1/3. For websites, I'm leaning towards providing a website for free once a candidate has 20 petition signatures in hand, otherwise asking for a $200 contribution. See yardsign, bumperstickers, and rack card samples here:https://template2019.weebly.com/get-involved.html Feel free to contact me at (512) 659-8896 or wesbenedict@gmail.com to discuss any aspect of your campaign. Thanks, --Wes Benedict
11/5/2020 update of election results below. Total Libertarian votes: 2,357,574.
AUSTIN - November 3, 2020 [Updated 11/4/2020]
The Libertarian Booster PAC compiled results for all 88 Libertarian candidates on the ballot for the November elections in Texas. While the total vote counts will continue to go up as results roll in, the percentages are unlikely to change much. As of the time of publishing, the 88 candidates received a total of 1,926,539 votes. Libertarian Booster PAC Founder, Wes Benedict, commented, "I want to thank all 88 candidates for stepping up to the plate and running for office. While no Libertarian candidates won their races in Texas tonight, Libertarian candidates spent the past year advocating for free markets, civil liberties, and peace, and gave voters who were disappointed with Republicans and Democrats a choice they could support." [11/4/2020 update: A previous version of this post reported two Republicans in the state legislature with Libertarian opponents likely lost their elections, but final results show those Republicans holding onto their seats, though barely.] Preliminary results for the 88 candidates are in the table below. Offering high-quality, low-cost campaign materials to candidates in Texas. The cost to candidates is low because donors to Libertarian Booster PAC pay part of the cost. More designs, more candidates, and offers to more states coming soon. https://www.libertarianboosterpac.org/shop.html#/ 
 [Click image to view full report] Libertarian Booster PAC presents a plan to cut Texas state spending across the board by 4% per year for ten years. Combined with projected 3% annual current-dollar growth in gross state product, this plan shows how Texas tax rates can be cut in half by 2030, and how state spending (as a percentage of gross state product) can be reduced by half. The plan is called the “Modest Plan to Cut the Texas Budget in Half.” Libertarians think people are better off when they are free to keep more of the money they earn. The lower the taxes, and the stronger the economy, the more people can afford the things they want and need without assistance from the government. We are not simply looking to improve government efficiency and to reduce waste. We would go further. Libertarians want the government to do less. We think many services the government provides today, like health care, education, and transportation, would be better if provided by the private sector. And some things done by government should not be done at all, like throwing marijuana users in jail. Our plan is to make Texans’ lives better by cutting government spending, reducing taxes, and moving many people off government assistance into a thriving free market economy. While some low-income Texans will have direct government benefits reduced, they’ll also pay lower sales taxes, lower government fees, have greater job opportunities and an overall lower cost of living. Key features:
For Immediate Release
Libertarian Prescription for Coronavirus AUSTIN – March 18, 2020 True, most Libertarians aren’t doctors. Our remedies are for the government. People are rightly concerned about the current coronavirus outbreak. A March 13, 2020 New York Times article quoting the CDC says that, in the worst-case scenario, as many as 214 million Americans might get infected and 1.7 million could die. Other experts expect far fewer infections and deaths once better data on infection rates becomes available, and as people change their behaviors to prevent the spread of the virus. Wes Benedict, founder of the Libertarian Booster PAC, commented, “In times of crisis, Americans are too quick to reach for the government as a default solver of problems. Politicians wanting to appear to be ‘doing something’ are all too eager to act, but they have a long history of doing things that make situations worse, both in the short term and the long term. “Libertarians believe that free people and free markets are best equipped to respond to crisis situations. Often government remedies, which might make us feel good, get us hooked and cause long-term damage. The war on poverty, war on terror, war on drugs, and other government responses to perceived threats have given us restrictions and programs that rarely get revoked. We don’t need a new expensive freedom-killing war on viruses which may kill more people than it helps by reducing economic development worldwide.” Benedict added, "Instead of asking what new program or law is needed in response to every problem like the coronavirus, we should be asking, 'What existing laws are adding to the problem?'" Below are activities the government should avoid, followed by prescriptions for activities the government should take. Governments should avoid the following: Mandatory restaurant and other business closings. People should be free to decide for themselves what risks they are willing to take. I’d highly recommend most senior citizens and those with weakened immune systems do their best to stay away from restaurants and stores. Many already do that during flu outbreaks. But it’s wrong for the government to force businesses to close, and doing that now sets a dangerous precedent. Quarantines and limits on public assembly. Quarantines can backfire. People who might be sick may avoid getting tested for fear of being held against their will. At-risk individuals have the choice to isolate themselves and use extra caution as they do during flu outbreaks. Healthy individuals are free to avoid public gatherings as well, but they should not be able to prevent others from assembling. Carriers of the disease can create risks for vulnerable individuals. However, Libertarian tenets of personal freedom and personal responsibility put the onus on the at-risk individual to stay isolated, rather than demand that the rest of the world change their behavior. The power to quarantine is very dangerous, because it amounts to imprisonment without a crime. That same power could be used in the future by government officials who want to get dissidents out of the way. The First Amendment protects people’s right to assemble, for good reason. As an example, the City of Austin has banned gatherings of more than 10 people. That’s wrong, violates the Constitution, should be reversed immediately, and should never be done again. Bailouts and other financial rescues. Government should avoid causing a financial pandemic on top of the disease pandemic. Forcing businesses to close, monkeying with interest rates, quantitative easing, promising bailouts, and other subsidies only make the financial problems worse in the short and long run. The world has suffered disease outbreaks in recent years such as Ebola, SARS, MERS, and swine flu. A new contagious disease outbreak should be a surprise to no one. It’s the responsibility of individuals and businesses to be prepared for occurrences like this. We should not punish prudent businesses by taxing them and giving that money to businesses that might otherwise fail. Things government should do:
Although Libertarians are famous for complaining about what government does wrong, there’s one area where the government is performing pretty well: free speech. Free speech is critical. We don’t want a situation like China where people who contradict the government are subject to threats, censorship, or perhaps even worse. While it’s possible the media has created more panic than we need, or failed to warn us quickly enough, press freedom is crucial. And freedom of the press means the freedom to be wrong. Our free media has grabbed America’s attention and has helped individuals stay informed so they can take voluntary action. Freedom of speech for every individual shall not be infringed. Free speech means the right to criticize the president, Congress, and all government officials. Free speech also means the right to question experts, to disagree, and to debate and argue on social media without interference from the government. Except for some defamation lawsuits and speech codes on campuses, America mostly does well respecting free speech. Benedict reaffirmed, “I know people are scared. Government reaction scares me more than the virus itself. Now is not the time to panic and throw out our principles. Instead, now is the time to stand firmly on principle, and remind ourselves what makes America great. Now is the time for us to take responsibility for our own health, and to voluntarily lend a hand to a neighbor. Free people, voluntary persuasion, and free markets are the surest, quickest, cheapest, and safest way for humanity to fight the coronavirus—not government coercion.” Wes Benedict is Founder of the Libertarian Booster PAC (libertarianboosterpac.org) and former Executive Director of the Libertarian National Committee. Contact: Wes Benedict, Libertarian Booster PAC president 512-659-8896 wesbenedict@gmail.com  Thanks to donors and the candidates who filed!
In response to new filing fees imposed on Libertarian Party candidates by the Republican-controlled 2019 Texas Legislature, the Libertarian Booster PAC recruited candidates to challenge the ten most vulnerable Republicans. We also offered to help pay their filing fees. Six candidates stepped up to the plate to challenge the ten most vulnerable Republicans in the following Texas House Districts: 64, 66, 92, 94, 96, 108, 112. We also paid the $3,750 filing fee for Thomas Oxford for State Supreme Court, in case that race becomes important for retaining ballot access in Texas. For Immediate Release
Libertarian Booster PAC vows revenge against Texas Republicans AUSTIN - November 18, 2019 - The Libertarian Booster PAC is recruiting Libertarian candidates to run against the ten weakest Republicans in the Texas House. The PAC is offering to help pay their filing fees. PAC president Wes Benedict commented, "This is revenge for House Bill 2504, which Republicans passed this year. It imposed massive filing fees in order to push out Libertarian candidates. "The Republicans want us off the ballot. Well, we want them out of the Texas House. We don't have the funds to run lots of Texas House candidates, so we're specifically targeting districts with vulnerable Republican incumbents. "I'm fine with Democrats taking over the Texas House, because divided government is usually less harmful than one-party rule. "The Republicans are running scared. They're using every trick in the book to protect their seats. House Bill 2504 was crafted to do two things: kick most Libertarians out of the 2020 election, and also bring a few Green Party candidates back in. The way Republicans see it, both of those changes will help them." These are the ten Republican Texas House districts being targeted by the Libertarian Booster PAC:
PAC website: https://www.libertarianboosterpac.org/texas-filing-fees.html#/ Benedict added, "In 2019, Texas Republicans grew state spending and blocked marijuana legalization. Instead of using the examples of Venezuela and Hong Kong to educate the public on the importance of the Second Amendment, they've gotten squishy by supporting red flag laws. Instead of espousing the benefits of free markets and free trade, they've used their bully pulpit to focus on anti-immigrant rhetoric. Most recent immigrants are hardworking people who came here to escape the bad government policies of their home countries. "Libertarians historically have received high vote percentages in Latino strongholds like San Antionio and El Paso, perhaps from Latinos who see the Republican brand as toxic and racist. In recent general elections, Libertarians have run around 100 candidates for offices all across Texas. The new filing fees have forced us to focus." Contact: Wes Benedict, Libertarian Booster PAC president 512-659-8896 wesbenedict@gmail.com ### |
Archives
April 2021
Categories |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
RSS Feed
|
Pol. adv. paid for by Libertarian Booster PAC.
|