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Campaign for Liberty

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Ron Paul's Campaign for Liberty
FoundedJune 10, 2008
FounderRon Paul
TypePublic, 501c4
FocusEducate Americans in freedom, sound money, non-interventionism, free markets, and support like-minded candidates at all levels of government.
Location
Area served
United States of America
ProductLiberty
Members100,000+[1]
OwnerRon Paul
Key people
Ron Paul
WebsiteCampaignForLiberty.com

Ron Paul's Campaign for Liberty is a political organization founded by ten-term United States Congressman Ron Paul. The Campaign for Liberty focuses on continuing the "Ron Paul Revolution" that was created during Paul's 2008 presidential campaign, and currently provides a membership program. Its legal status is that of a 501(c)4 nonprofit. [2] It is also known as C4L.

It was announced around June 12, 2008 as a way of continuing the grassroots support involved in Ron Paul's 2008 presidential run, and corresponded with the suspension of that campaign. Paul formally announced during the Texas Republican Convention that he had created this new organization known as the Campaign for Liberty.[3]

Mission

The mission of the Campaign for Liberty is to promote and defend the principles of individual liberty, constitutional government, sound money, free markets, and non-interventionism, by means of educational and political activity.[4]

Strategy

According to the official website, The Campaign for Liberty will carry out its mission through the following activities:

  • Gaining a foothold in political life at every level of government by expanding the precinct leader program.
  • Educating the electorate and lobbying against harmful or unconstitutional legislation.
  • Encouraging the formation of discussion groups and book clubs at the local level to help people learn more about the organization's ideas.
  • Establishing a speakers bureau to give presentations around the country about the great principles they champion.
  • Developing materials for homeschooling families, to help them educate their children in history, sound economics, and related fields.
  • Featuring written as well as video commentaries on the news and issues of the day.
  • Additional efforts as time and resources allow.[4]

Funding and Foundation

Ron Paul founded the Campaign for Liberty with a portion of the over $4.7 million left from his presidential campaign, and it is also currently funded through donations by both mail and the internet.

Purpose

According to Ron Paul, the purpose of the Campaign for Liberty is to continue the principles that invoked the grassroots support of his campaign, and to also be able to continue the message that he promoted during the course of his bid, without having a presidential campaign, and is also intended to "lay the groundwork for a different America." Paul also noted,[5]

The time has come to act on these words. May future generations look back on our work and say that these were men and women who, in a moment of great crisis, stood up to the politicians, the opinion-molders, and the establishment, and saved their country.

It was also established as a reporting agency for news involved with the principles of the organization.

Rally for the Republic

The Rally for the Republic.
The Rally for the Republic insignia, from the convention floor.

On June 10, 2008 the Ron Paul Campaign announced the first promotional event for the organization, a "Rally for the Republic." After being denied a speaking slot at the Republican convention, Ron Paul, who is not supporting GOP nominee John McCain, decided to stage his own parallel convention in Minneapolis. [6] This event occurred at the Target Center on September 2, 2008, which was the second day of the GOP Convention. [7] On July 22, 2008, the event's official website launched, which provided details of the Rally, and of other events which were to occur in the same week including a leadership summit, book signing, and free concert.[8] Notable attendees were announced, including the Rally's emcee, MSNBC's Tucker Carlson, Governor Jesse Ventura, Governor Gary E. Johnson, Barry Goldwater Jr., Bruce Fein, Grover Norquist, Barb Davis White and Doug Wead. Country Music Star Sara Evans and singer/songwriter Aimee Allen headlined the musical portion of the event.[9][10] Tickets for the main event went on sale for $17.76 on July 25th. Over half of them sold within 12 hours. [11] On September 1, the more than 10,000 tickets were sold out.[12] Most of the rally was broadcast live on C-SPAN 2 and a live stream was set up on the Campaign for Liberty website.

According to the Rally's official website, its purpose was to "be a celebration of our movement and our supporters, a launch party for the Campaign for Liberty, and a clear call to the Republican Party to return to its roots of limited government, personal responsibility, and protection of our natural rights. The event ran in conjunction with the first two days of the Republican National Convention and featured top conservative speakers, musicians, and organizations. It also had an organizational and training function for the Campaign for Liberty and the Freedom Movement.” [13] Much of the press of the event referred to the rally as a "counter-convention".[14]

The Rally was the culmination of three days of activities run by C4L in Minneapolis. On Sunday, August 31, C4L ran the "Real Politics Training School", where its supporters had the "opportunity to learn the skills‚ strategies‚ and techniques necessary to be an effective activist‚ from top experts in the field." [15] "The Ron Paul Nation Celebration", featuring Aimee Allen, Marc Scibilia, Rick Ellis, and headlined by country music artist Rockie Lynne, took place Monday night, September 1st.[16] Republican congressional candidate B.J. Lawson was the master of ceremonies at the Celebration. The Rally for the Republic concluded the three-day activities on Tuesday night.

References

  1. ^ Ron Paul’s Campaign For Liberty | The Revolution Continues
  2. ^ Donation Page: Legal Footnote. Campaign for Liberty
  3. ^ Ron Paul says campaign to 'shift gears'. Associated Press, June 13, 2008.
  4. ^ a b http://www.campaignforliberty.com/mission/ Campaign for Liberty: Mission
  5. ^ Ron Paul's Goal: 100,000 By September. Marc Ambinder, Atlantic Monthly, June 13, 2008.
  6. ^ Ron Paul Planning Parallel Convention. Nick Juliano, The Raw Story, June 10, 2008.
  7. ^ Ron Paul's Political Event Moves to Bigger Arena. Brian Bakst, Newsweek, July 22, 2008.
  8. ^ Schedule
  9. ^ Performers
  10. ^ Suzanne Gamboa (2008-08-29). "Ron Paul followers gathering for own convention". Associated Press.
  11. ^ Tickets on sale.
  12. ^ Ron Paul's Rally for the Republic Sold Out - Additional Seats Opened at Target Center To Accommodate Overflow Crowd
  13. ^ Ron Paul's Campaign For Liberty | Rally for The Republic > Mission Statement
  14. ^ Ralph Z. Hallow (2008-09-01). "McCain in talks with Ron Paul for backing". Washington Times.
  15. ^ Ron Paul's Campaign For Liberty | Rally for The Republic > Schedule
  16. ^ Ron Paul's Campaign For Liberty | Rally for The Republic > Schedule
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