Welcome to the North Dakota Campaign for Liberty website!
The Campaign for Liberty is a grassroots organization, working for change beginning at the most local level: the precinct. Precinct Leader are the foundation of the success of Campaign for Liberty. My job as Interim State Coordinator is to give you the tools you need to be an effective citizen activist. But you are key to the success of Campaign for Liberty. You are the ones who will communicate with voters in your precinct about the important issues of the day. Your participation in working toward our goals is essential and truly appreciated.
The people who are running our country would like nothing more than to keep your attention on CSPAN and the evening news, to worry and complain about what goes on in Washington. Like the magician who doesn't want you to see what's really going on, they keep our attention on things we can't control or influence so that we neglect the one area we can influence: our neighborhood.
The fact is the folks in Washington DC are doing exactly what we have trained them to do for the past 10-15-20 years. They first ran for school board and adopted all-day kindergarten and built extravagant, state-of-the-art schools when the student population was declining. And what did we do? We re-elected them.
Then they ran for county commission and increased our property taxes and neglected the township roads and bridges. Most of us grumbled and called the radio show to complain. And then we re-elected them.
Then they ran for state legislature where they increased state spending, subsidized their pet industries, and raised our taxes. Those who paid attention didn't like it. But what did we do 1½ years later? We put them back into office. So by the time these guys got to Washington they had just spent the last dozen or so years learning that they could do whatever they wanted and still get elected. That's why they voted for a bailout even though constituents' calls were 100 to 1 against it. Because they knew we wouldn't do a thing abut it.
It's time to put a stop rewarding them, stop training them to be tyrants. It's time to teach them a different lesson. We must teach them that there is a price to pay when they erode our freedoms and take our hard-earned money. We're the ones who will change Washington, but we will only do it after we've cleaned out City Hall. And the County Commission. And the State Legislature.
Our work starts now. The legislative session begins in a matter of weeks. We need to be informed and prepared. We need to inform our friends and neighbors and get them involved. Don't look at the magician's tricks. Instead, pay attention to what's up his sleeve.
The power is in your hands to make a change. Take charge of your precinct today. I encourage you to use all the tools that Campaign for Liberty has to offer. Precinct Leader Training is a great tool as well as the C4L online education and local meetings and training. I look forward to working with you sot that together we can become an force that cannot be ignored.
Today I attended the Legislative Forum that included legislators from Districts 13, 22, 27 and 45. The first question they were asked is "Why has state spending increased so dramatically when state population remains virtually unchanged?"
To a man (and woman) the answer was the same: revenues are up, we have more money, we're going to spend it. Only one legislator--Rep. Wes Belter, R-Dist. 22--lamented the increased spending and said it needed to be curtailed.
Contrast that with Rep. Weiland, R-Dist 13, who said "Everyone in the state has benefited from the increased spending." Oh really? He really thinks that we are better off with the state spending our money than letting citizens keep their money?
Sen. Judy Lee welcomes the budgetary freedom that doubling the state budget in 6 years has allowed her. She said prior to these budget surpluses they were unable to fund Human Services programs like they wanted. What a difference an extra $2 billion makes.
And of course, all of them tried to convince us that there's a difference between one time spending (roads in Western ND, building projects for the universities, etc) and on-going spending. It appears that our legislators need a lesson in accounting. The entire budget-whether one-time spending or on-going-comes out of one source: your pocket. If the state is in dire need of a one-time expenditure, then some other budget item needs to be reduced. That's what you and I do when we are faced with "one-time expenditures." When we had to have a new roof, we didn't get a raise in our income to cover it. Instead, we put off a trip we'd planned and tightened our spending in other areas.
The state needs to do the same and quit minimizing citizens' concerns about out of control budget with the lie that "it's just one-time spending." Tell your legislators so at the next Legislative Forum. Most districts will be holding forums February 19th or February 26th. Be sure to make your voice heard at those forume.
Yesterday HCR 4007 received a "Do Pass" recommendation from Committee and now goes to a vote in the Senate. This is a resolution calling for a Constitutional Convention to initiate a Balanced Budget Amendment (BBA). A BBA is a great idea--we need some sanity brought to Congress. But a Constitutional Convention is a bad idea. Even though HCR 4007 limits the Con Con to the BBA, there is no assurance that other states calling for the Con Con will be similarly limited. A Con Con convening without strict limitations could initiate a re-write or amendment on just about anything they wanted in the Constitution.
There are better, safer ways to start the Amendment process. Once 2/3 of Congress proposes an amendment, it goes to a vote of the people. In order to pass, an amendment needs ¾ of the states to ratify it. The process is wholly in the hands of the people, not a run away Constitutional Convention.
Look, there's nothing currently in the Constitution that allows Congress to spend as much as they want on whatever they want. Congress disregards the Constitution with virtually every vote they cast. If we can't convince 2/3 of Congress to initiate an amendment, what's the likelihood that they will suddenly start obeying it once it's passed?
Let's work towards a balanced budget, but let's not do it with a Constitutional Convention.
The Precinct Leader plants seeds in the neighborhood garden, cultivates and nurtures them, and watches them grow. The Precinct Leader is a good neighbor.
A Precinct Leader makes the largest impact by simply connecting with neighbors. Meet a neighbor while out raking leaves, walking the dog, getting the mail, shoveling snow or mowing the lawn. Bring up something that affects the neighborhood and let them talk about it and you'll have an idea where they stand and what is important to them. Knowing about specific legislation that affects your neighborhood and keeping up with current events in your area is critical. That way, you can match the neighbor's concern with current and upcoming legislation.
"Hey, did you know the city council just approved an increase in what we pay for trash collection? They're nickel and diming us to death." Listen to the neighbor's response and take note of it. If they are a hard-nosed tax and spender or don't want to talk about it, it's time to meet another neighbor. Listening to your neighbors is the key to good planting practices.
Attending city or town council meetings is a great way to cultivate your garden. When you listen to what people have to say and watch their reaction to certain things being said, you will know who might be a good person or persons to approach after the meeting and talk a little further to plant a seed. "I can't believe they just approved that." Let the neighbor talk. "I live off of McGee Street. Where are you?" If they're in your precinct, they'll remember you when you do your door-to-door survey and other activities. In fact, they may offer to help you. They will recognize your name when they read your Letter to the Editor in the news.
Precinct Leaders are instrumental in keeping tabs on what area representatives are doing, watching them closely, building a "file" on them and calling them out on their infractions. Letters to the Editor, radio call-ins and "tattling" to neighbors is effective and can even be fun. The whole point is to nurture, protect and cultivate your neighborhood garden.
Before you know it, you'll be the person that neighbors come to when they want to talk about issues. They'll come to you because they know you care, that you listen to them, that you're knowledgeable and that you will take action to protect your neighborhood. You will be the person that neighbors come to when they learn of a new piece of legislation and wonder how it may affect them. They will want to know your thoughts on upcoming election issues and candidates. Your influence will be felt in the community and you may be asked to become a member of a board or even run for office.
As a team, Precinct Leaders will come together at county- and district-wide meetings and in the state capitol for legislative sessions. Nationwide strategies will be employed. The more voices, the greater the impact. New faces and large crowds will keep local government on their toes. They are used to having people attend meetings near election time, but they are not used to us being there asking thoughtful questions between elections, where harmful legislation is many times passed virtually unnoticed.
After this election, our neighbors will begin to realize that nothing has changed. They'll continue to complain. We'll continue to listen and plant our seeds, water them and feed them, and with time and patience, reap the rewards as we stand proudly together in our lush neighborhood gardens across the world.
Campaign for Liberty is a 501(c)4 lobbying organization which neither supports nor opposes candidates for public office and claims no responsibility for the actions of individuals or groups of individuals who use the Campaign for Liberty logo or name or who may claim to act as representatives of the Campaign for Liberty without prior written consent of the Campaign for Liberty. [?]
