Upload
michael-duncan
View
218
Download
0
Embed Size (px)
DESCRIPTION
Summer 2012 Human Action
Citation preview
JULY 2012 • VOL 2 • ISSUE 3
The Supreme Court’s shocking and deeply
disappointing decision to uphold ObamaCare and
its individual mandate as a tax has ushered in an
unprecedented expansion of federal power and
handed a huge victory to Obama and the progressive
plan to “fundamentally transform America.”
But all is not lost. This fight remains winnable.
Although the Supreme Court has tragically upheld
ObamaCare, “We the People” can still repeal it.
FreedomWorks has decided to “double down,”
publishing a five-point plan for full repeal and
calling on all Americans to join us in declaring our
independence from ObamaCare.
AFTER THE OBAMACARE RULING: WHY WE’RE “DOUBLING DOWN” FOR FULL REPEAL
HUMAN ACTIONTHE QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER OF THE FREEDOMWORKS COMMUNITY
FreedomWorks and
FreedomWorks Foundation
recruit, educate, train and
mobilize millions of volunteer
activists to fight for lower
taxes, less government and
more freedom.
ObamaCare after SCOTUS:
The Fight Goes On 1, 6, 7
Letter from the President 2
FreedomWorks Dominates
Online 3
Mourdock Wins 4-5
FreedomWorks Wins Critical
School Choice Battle 8-9
New Staff Join the
FreedomWorks Team 10
Activist Profile: Gena and Ed
Bell 11
In the News 12
...CONTINUED
THE GREAT BETRAYALChief Justice John Roberts cast the deciding
vote in the ObamaCare case and penned the
“Opinion of the Court,” which reveals his motives
to be transparently political. Rather than simply
judge the law’s constitutionality, he declares a
need to “adopt any reasonable construction in
order to preserve the statute from being ruled
unconstitutional.”
He adds: “It is not our job to protect the people from
the consequences of their political choices.”
After first siding with the four
conservatives -- Justices Scalia,
Kennedy, Thomas, and Alito -- to
find that the purchase mandate
is unconstitutional, Roberts then
sides with the four “progressives”
-- Ginsburg, Breyer, Kagan, and
Sotomayor -- to rule that the
government may nevertheless
impose that mandate!
It turns out the massive, 2,801-
page law -- with its 159 new
bureaucracies, $2.6 trillion
in new spending, 1,968 new
federal powers, and 13,000
pages of regulations (so far) -- was
ultimately saved by a single word.
The Chief Justice embraced a
most unreasonable construction,
straining to read the word
“penalty” (for not purchasing
health insurance) as a “tax.”
The four conservatives
vigorously dissented from this
interpretation, unanimously
arguing for a complete strike-
down of the law. Their detailed
and cogent opinion leaves little
room for doubt that ObamaCare
exceeds the Constitution’s
carefully crafted limits on
government power and violates
our inalienable rights to life,
liberty, and the pursuit of
happiness.
But instead of respecting those
limits, the Chief Justice chose
to vastly expand federal power.
Thanks to this decision, Congress
can now make us do anything, as
long as it’s enforced with a tax.
HOPE REMAINSThankfully, in our system, the
Supreme Court doesn’t have the
last word. If the Court won’t do
its job -- which is to uphold the
Constitution, period -- then we
will have to do it for them, in
Congress, in the state legislatures,
and at the ballot box.
As of now, the only sure way to
beat ObamaCare and restore the
Constitution is to “Take America
Back” in 2012, primarily by
taking the Senate. To do so,
the citizens of this nation must
become informed, engaged, and
mobilized.
REPEAL: OUR FIVE-POINT PLANObamaCare doesn’t take full
effect until 2014 -- and if we do
our jobs right in 2012, it never
will. Here is FreedomWorks’ five-
point plan for full repeal.
1. STOP THE EXCHANGE:Stop your state from setting up
an ObamaCare exchange. Due to
a loophole in the law, we can stop
ObamaCare cold in any state
that fails or declines to set up an
exchange. So far, exchanges have
been set up in only two states,
and only about a dozen have an
exchange in the works. Most
states are internally divided or
hesitant. We need to throw sand
in the gears in every state we can.
One way to do that is to pass a
“Health Care Freedom Act,”
a state law or ballot initiative
that bars state officials from
cooperating in implementing
any law that would take away
our unalienable right to obtain
health care free of government
interference.
2. STOP THE EXPANSION:Get your state to opt out of the
costly ObamaCare Medicaid
expansion. In the lawsuit,
twenty-six states -- more than
half the Union -- sued to stop this
coercive expansion of the state-
federal health-care program for
the poor. The Roberts Decision
agreed with the states, but
instead of striking the expansion
down, chose instead to declare it
optional for states. This creates
yet another opportunity for us to
stop the spread of government
health care.
FreedomWorks’ Dean Clancy & U.S. Senator Mike Lee at the Supereme Court.
JULY 2012 • VOL 2 • ISSUE 3
3. TAKE THE SENATE:Elect four additional pro-repeal
Senators, which would give us a
pro-repeal majority. We currently
have 47 votes in the Senate for
repeal, all of them Republicans.
We need four more pro-repeal
votes to have a majority. Thanks
to the Roberts Decision declaring
the purchase mandate a “tax,”
it’s now clear that under a special
parliamentary procedure known
as “budget reconciliation,” we
only need a simple majority, 51
votes, rather than the customarily
required 60 votes, to repeal this
law.
4. KEEP THE HOUSE:Retain and if possible enlarge the
existing House majority, which is
already committed to full repeal.
The 242 House Republicans
elected in 2010 have forced that
chamber to vote no fewer than 30
times on bills to repeal, defund,
or dismantle ObamaCare. They
need reinforcements.
5. TAKE THE WHITE HOUSE:Elect a president who will sign
the full repeal bill. Let’s face it. If
we want to repeal ObamaCare,
we must repeal President Obama.
We need your help in this battle.
Get involved in your state. Visit
our online war room, www.
FullRepealNow.com, to view
up-to-date maps and other useful
information.
AFTER REPEAL: RESTARTFull repeal is only half the
battle. We must not only repeal
-- we must restart. If we don’t
implement patient-centered,
consumer-driven reforms, then
the fight to repeal will come to
nothing, because it will only be
a matter of time before the Left
regroups and makes yet another
push in its century-old fight for
socialized medicine.
To build a patient-centered
system, we need to get
government out of the way
and out of the examining
room. Instead of focusing on
“expanding coverage,” we should
focus on reducing costs and
expanding individual liberty.
We must start treating patients
like free men and women capable
of making their own choices.
Markets work in health care,
when we let them. Only when
patients control the dollars do we
see prices fall and quality rise.
Patients have a right to shop
around, with their own money.
Health professionals have a right
to compete for our business.
Insurers have a right to price their
products according to risk.
There is no excuse for
government mandates and
policies that tip the scales in favor
of third-party payment and that
needlessly impede commerce
across state lines.
States should also reform their
tort laws to protect doctors from
fraudulent malpractice suits.
And Congress should preserve
and strengthen Health Savings
Accounts, a patient-friendly
tool that ObamaCare would
effectively eliminate.
These are just a few of the
many ideas being presented
by our side—ideas that need to
be considered in an open and
transparent process that doesn’t
reek of the corruption and
vote-buying of Nancy Pelosi’s
and Harry Reid’s “Jam the bill
through at any cost!” approach.
The path to repeal and true
health care reform is clear. It
runs not through the courts, but
through the legislatures and the
voting booth.
Fear not. This is only the second
act, the Empire Strikes Back stage
of the saga. Our side will win in
the end, because our principles
are true, our mission is clear,
our goal is within reach, and our
hearts are strong.
To recover our lost freedom, we
must take America back in 2012.
The Tea Party needs volunteers.
We need to fill our ranks with
stout-hearted patriots who are
willing to contribute their time,
their talents, and their treasure in
this sacred cause. Are you in?
Dean Clancy protesting ObamaCare at the Supreme Court.
So much has happened since the last edition of Human Action that it’s
really difficult to summarize.
We’ve added a number of new staffers at FreedomWorks, including
an incredibly talented graphic designer who created this redesigned
Human Action. You can read more about these new freedom-fighters
on page 4 of this edition.
In the battle for more parental choice in education, we scored a huge
victory in Pennsylvania. On page 8 you can read more about this two
year fight in the Keystone state, which now joins places like South
Carolina, Indiana, Louisiana, and Mississippi in a growing coalition of
states that have passed these critical reforms.
In the online world, FreedomWorks is continuing to build a massive,
informed, and engaged freedom community. Our nearly 2 million-
strong Facebook page and our new online video series Tea Time with
Max Pappas are just two ways we are connecting constituents directly
with their elected officials. I hope you enjoy reading about the exciting
things we’re doing online on page 3.
As you probably know, the Supreme Court upheld ObamaCare and
its individual mandate as a “tax.” This fight is far from over. I’d like
to share with you an excerpt from the majority opinion, authored by
Chief Justice John Roberts, who joined the liberal wing of the Court
and upheld the law:
“It is not our job to protect the people from the consequences of their
political choices.” — Chief Justice of the Supreme Court John Roberts.
It’s an absurd and frightening statement—one that our Framers and our
Constitution would certainly reject. But it’s also a call-to-action. It’s up
to us to restore America.
I hope you enjoy this latest edition of Human Action. Thank you for
your continued support of FreedomWorks and remember—it’s up to us.
THANK YOU. IN LIBERTY,
A LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT
Matt Kibbe
President and CEO
JULY 2012 • VOL 2 • ISSUE 3
FREEDOMWORKS RUNS FACEBOOKThe conventional wisdom, from Howard Dean’s
innovative 2004 Presidential run to President
Obama’s current campaign is that the Left leads
the online arena when it comes to political activism
and organization. Ron Paul’s Presidential runs
notwithstanding, FreedomWorks has proven that
with the right tools and organizational philosophy,
free-market folks are on top online.
Looking at the data, it is clear that FreedomWorks
has the advantage. Instead of dictating from the
top-down, our community oriented, bottom-
up philosophy is simply dominating the online
market. Advertising group Targeted Victory
found that FreedomWorks is the top political
group on Facebook. The numbers are astounding:
FreedomWorks has over 1.7 million Facebook
fans and owns a 30.5% market share of political
engagements on the social media site. The nearest
competition, the ultra-left MoveOn.org, has a paltry
17.5% market share. But that is not the end.
During the period studied, MoveOn posted 162
times, and garnered a total of 133,702 engagements.
On the other hand, FreedomWorks posted 66 times,
or less than half the amount of MoveOn, yet we
garnered 232,308 engagements. So while MoveOn
received 825 engagements per post, FreedomWorks
received 3,520 engagements per post… 4 times as
many as the nearest competitor. All of this means
that FreedomWorks followers are engaged and
FreedomWorks is engaging. We are building
an active community of freedom-fighters and
dominating the conversation online.
LIVE ONLINE: TEA TIME WITH MAX PAPPASHere at FreedomWorks, we are committed to
the disintermediation of politics. We believe that
like many of you, most Americans are tired of
having to deal with the abject failure of the media
gatekeepers. Their refusal to track stories that
actually matter and ask the hard questions have led
to a soap-opera of largely meaningless gossip. Enter
Max Pappas and his internet series Tea Time.
This new program brings real conservatives in
academia and Congress, such as the great Thomas
Sowell and Rep. David Schweikert, directly to
you without having to deal with the mediators
of Official Opinion. Perhaps the most important
factor of Tea Time is that we get around mere
sound bites. Tea Time is a one-on-one, in-depth
discussion that provides the “how and why,” rather
than just the “what.” For many Americans, how a
political figure reasons through their decisions is
just as important as the decision itself, and this is
one of the great benefits of Tea Time - as well as
leaving the old-guard media behind.
FREEDOMWORKS DOMINATES ONLINE, TOO
FreeomWorks’Max Pappas & Matt Kibbe discuss Hostile Takeover at the Activist Fly-in & Bootcamp
Over the past 18 months, FreedomWorks has
engaged in a battle to bring meaningful education
reform to Pennsylvania. Beginning in late 2010 with
a candidate petition, FreedomWorks has engaged our
network of over 35,000 activists with one clear goal:
Reform failing PA schools.
On Saturday, June 30th the Pennsylvania legislature
passed an historic school choice bill which includes
an extension of the state’s existing Educational
Improvement Tax Credit program (EITC) tax
credit and a new “opportunity scholarship” program.
This is the first time a school choice bill of this
magnitude has passed into law, ending a 20 year
battle and bringing hope to thousands of children
state-wide.
As part of the budget deal concluded just before
midnight, the legislature broadened the EITC,
adding $50 million in tax breaks to businesses that
donate money for scholarships to students in the
state’s lowest-performing schools. The new tax credit
BIG STEP FOR SCHOOL CHOICE IN PENNSYLVANIA
applies only to students in the attendance area of
the lowest-performing 15 percent of public schools,
more than one-third of which are in Philadelphia.
The budget provides for corporate donations to pay
up to $8,500 in tuition for the students to attend
private schools. Special-education students can get
up to $15,000 in tuition.
FreedomWorks engaged our network in grassroots
activism including door-to-door literature drops,
yard sign blitzing, lobbying visits, phone calls,
rallies, press conferences, petition drives, and
online activism. Through the use of our network.
FreedomWorks was able to distribute over
• 35,000 yard signs
• 180,000 door hangers
• 150,000 phone calls
• 2,000 letters to lawmakers
FreedomWorks staff sign planting in Pennsylvania for School Choice.
JULY 2012 • VOL 2 • ISSUE 3
FreedomWorks was also successful engaging in
traditional campaign activities, including a multitude
of radio ads that targeted lawmakers throughout
the state. Using more modern techniques,
FreedomWorks engaged in an online marketing
campaign engaging activists on Twitter and
Facebook as well as utilizing online advertisement.
Along the way the FreedomWorks Campaigns
team hosted events throughout the state - including
stops in Harrisburg, Chambersburg, Philadelphia,
Pittsburgh, Doylestown, Ivyland, Wilkes-
Barre, Bucks County, Montgomery County,
Williamsport, Lewisville, Lewisburg, Mt. Union,
Altoona, and Beaver County. These events gave
our activists a better understanding of education
reform and helped create new allies for future
battles. FreedomWorks was also able to use these
events as an opportunity to connect activists with
FreedomWorks grassroots campaign techniques.
We have found this method extremely helpful
in creating a knowledgeable group self-starting
supporters who can continue to advocate for
freedom in their areas.
As part of our goal to educate activists,
FreedomWorks used the influential education
reform movies “Waiting For Superman” and
“The Cartel,” sending copies of the DVD to
activists who would then host viewing parties in
their homes. These parties acted as key word-of-
mouth education campaigns that helped bring in
new activists and attention to the failing school
system plaguing America today. FreedomWorks
distributed over 1,000 copies of each movie.
Along with our online presence, the
FreedomWorks Campaigns team engaged in an
online education push using the FreedomWorks
blog. This forum served as an update-center to all
the activists on the ground.
As part of our “inside/outside” approach, the
FreedomWorks staff spent time in the capital
attending weekly sit-downs with lawmakers to
educate them on the issue. Weekly “lobbying”
visits continued throughout the year with our staff
reaching a majority of House and Senate members.
These meetings were influential in developing
relationships and spreading our message of reform.
We also created a key vote notice and leave-behind
to engage these lawmakers in this critical education
campaign.
Continuing our inside/outside approach,
FreedomWorks staff testified on behalf of
FreedomWorks at various committees including
the House and Senate Education committees.
These meetings offered a great opportunity for
FreedomWorks staff to engage lawmakers and
continue to bring the issue to the forefront.
FreedomWorks has ended up with a stronger
network filled with engaged activists ready to
continue the fight for more reform, continuing
a long tradition in the state. Through weekly
communication over email, Facebook, Twitter,
Podcasts and the FreedomWorks blog, our activists
were fully engaged and were helped along using
our service center model. Our network is stronger
than ever with more members and more unified
network ready to engage in further battles.
Door Hangers in Pennsylvania for School Choice
MATT BATTAGLIA As the Graphic Web Designer
for FreedomWorks, I have the
responsibility of managing and
designing many of our online
campaigns and main websites.
I am also responsible for the
variety of new print materials
coming out of FreedomWorks.
I recently moved to DC from
New Jersey after working a few
different design and web jobs. I
am a Jersey native and graduate
of Rutgers University - New
Brunswick. I enjoy reading and
drawing comics books. I have
seen the Boss 10 times.
AUSTIN PETERSENI’m the new Director of
Production at FreedomWorks.
Previously I was a producer for
Judge Andrew Napolitano’s
show FreedomWatch on the Fox
Business Network, and I moved
to Washington D.C. recently to
work for FreedomWorks. Born
in Independence Missouri and
raised on a farm in Peculiar, I
was a Musical Theatre Major
at Missouri State University.
After graduation I lived and
worked in various positions in
the entertainment industry in
New York City for eight years
before becoming involved in
politics through Ron Paul’s 2008
Presidential Campaign.
JEFF SCULLYAs the Activist Relations
Coordinator at FreedomWorks,
I’m the point of contact
for assisting activists on
FreedomConnector. Prior to
joining the FreedomWorks
Staff, I was a FreedomWorks
intern in the spring of 2012
and a graduate of Rutgers
University-Camden, New Jersey
with a B.A. in Political Science
in 2011. At Rutgers I was co-
captain for the Rutgers-Camden
hockey team. Outside of work,
I enjoy fishing and am an often
disappointed Flyers and Eagles
fan. I am also the NJ State
Chairman of Young Americans
for Liberty.
DEREK ELLERMANOriginally from Green Bay
a.k.a. Titletown, USA, I joined
FreedomWorks after a tour
of duty on Capitol Hill in a
freshman Republican office.
I recently graduated from the
University of Wisconsin-Green
Bay with a degree in Political
Science.
As a former Hill staffer, I realized
that out of several thousand
staffers, only a few had any
real dedication to freedom over
party affiliation. For any real
change to occur, there needs to
be millions more of us holding
the politicians accountable. That
is what attracted me to work at
FreedomWorks. My motto is,
“Amplify what they can’t defy.”
My ideal night would include
a pair of freshly ironed
pleats, a fine scotch, and
good conversation about the
possibilities of space and the
introspective implications of the
vast universe. I also love 80’s
horror movies and the works of
Hunter S. Thompson.
ERIC SCHOLLAs Development Assistant, I find
out how we can best mesh the
FreedomWorks mission with the
interests of our generous donors. I
came to FreedomWorks from The
Philanthropy Roundtable where
I conducted education research.
Prior to that, I had interned at the
American Legislative Exchange
Council (ALEC).
MIGNON MAYI’m the Membership Marketing
Coordinator at FreedomWorks,
managing donor fulfillment,
coordinating our monthly
giving program, and executing
donor-related marketing. Prior
to FreedomWorks, I worked at
an award winning Republican
media shop. Hailing from
Mississippi and Louisiana, I
spend my spare time bragging
about the 2010 Saints Super
Bowl win (WHO DAT!?!) or my
lovely nieces. I went to Loyola
University New Orleans, where I
majored in Mass Communication
with a focus in Public Relations
and minored in Sociology.
TREY GROVERI am the Press Assistant of
FreedomWorks. I’m a proud
Floridian that graduated from the
University of North Florida in
Jacksonville, FL with a bachelor’s
degree in Business Management
and Administration. Prior to
joining FreedomWorks in March
2012, I was an office assistant
at Heritage Action for America
and a Logistics Manager for
“The Delivery Source” in
Jacksonville, FL. When I’m
not at FreedomWorks you can
either find me hitting the gym,
riding motorcycles, or watching a
football or soccer game on TV.
NEW STAFF JOIN THE FREEDOMWORKS TEAM
JULY 2012 • VOL 2 • ISSUE 3
ACTIVIST PROFILES: GENA AND ED BELLGena and Ed Bell are from
Cincinnati, Ohio and have been
involved with FreedomWorks on
numerous grassroots campaigns
since 2010. Their incredible
work both locally and nationally
has been a huge asset to our
efforts to fight for lower taxes, less
government, and more freedom.
F W : How have you been
involved with us?
E D : Like a million other
Americans, we attended
the FreedomWorks rally on
9/12 at the Capitol. Our first
personal involvement began in
the summer of 2010. Brendan
Steinhauser met with grassroots
leaders in Cincinnati. He
explained how FreedomWorks
could assist with activist training,
provide materials, motivate
volunteers, and provide resources
to help inform voters on
candidates and issues. In August,
Gena attended her first FreedomWorks boot camp and in September
2010, she volunteered for the FreedomWorks rally in D.C.
Since then, we have worked as a distribution point and coordinator for
FreedomWorks and FreedomWorks for America materials to support
specific issues and campaigns, such as Ohio Issues 2 & 3 in 2011 and
our current efforts to elect Josh Mandel for U.S. Senate.
G E N A : The past two years have brought many opportunities including
the Ohio launch of Freedom Connector and Ed serving on the Tea
Party Debt Commission. But our greatest experience as activists came
in the summer of 2011, when we traveled to Israel with FreedomWorks
to exchange ideas with grassroots activists and see if the same strategies
could work in other countries. This experience would have not been
possible without FreedomWorks.
F W : Why do you choose to work with us?
E D : FreedomWorks is a bottom-up organization, always asking how
they can be of service to activists. They provide tools, materials and
technology to get our message out on issues and candidates. We enjoy a
great relationship with every member of the organization and find their
guidance and knowledge invaluable in our efforts.
G E N A : What compels you to keep fighting for freedom?
We fight because losing is not an option. The alternative to our limited
Constitutional government is tyranny. Freedom has proven to be the
best way for people to live without fear of their government and enjoy
a great quality of life. We fight because Americans died both here and
abroad protecting our freedoms. Everything special and good about
America will end if we don’t succeed. It’s worth repeating, losing is
simply not an option.
F W : Do you have any advice for other grassroots activists?
E D : Keep networking with other activists, not only in your state, but
across the country. FreedomConnector can help make that happen.
You’ll be amazed how many times groups will find opportunities to
share ideas, inform and help one another.
E D : Be an advocate for unity on
important issues or campaigns.
Groups are pulled in many
directions and volunteers can
burn out with too many demands
on their limited time.
There is a perfect task for every
volunteer. We learned one size
does not fit all, but there is a job
for everyone and every volunteer
has the ability to contribute in
their own manner.
FreedomWorks Activists Ed & Gena Bell.
This page is paid for by FreedomWorks for America, FreedomworksforAmerica.org, and not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee.
HOOSIERS UNSEAT SIX-TERM SEN. DICK LUGAR IN FAVOR OF FREEDOMWORKS FOR AMERICA’S CANDIDATE.Recently, our endorsed Senate candidate and State Treasurer Richard Mourdock shocked the political
establishment by toppling six-term incumbent Senator Dick Lugar in the Indiana primary. But Mourdock
didn’t just win, he won in a landslide, garnering over 400,000 votes and winning by a massive 61-39% margin.
“Lugar, 80, was the first Senate
incumbent ousted this year and
his defeat showed that the anti-
Washington, small government
Tea Party movement is alive and
well,” wrote Nick Carey and Eric
Johnson of Reuters.
Many in the GOP establishment
quickly pointed to an inept Lugar
campaign and Lugar’s residency
issue for his downfall, but as The
Atlantic notes: “well before those
issues got a foothold, a grassroots-
driven, local movement to unseat
Lugar was well under way.”
Leading that grassroots
movement were our local Indiana
activists, campaigning under
the banner of Hoosiers for a
Conservative Senate and helping
us build the most sophisticated
ground game the Tea Party
movement has ever seen.
We made over 400,000 phone
MOURDOCK VICTORY SHOCKS GOP ESTABLISHMENT
calls to registered Republican
voters, sent over 150,000 pieces
of mail including 50,000 of our
Retire Lugar books, knocked on
over 125,000 doors to distribute
voter education materials, and
planted over 20,000 yard signs
during the campaign.
“What we did is we provided
tools to a really great grassroots
network in Indiana. I mean we
helped train them. We provided
them with online phone banking.
We provided them with all of
the materials that they would
need and we provided them with
really cutting-edge walking map
technology,” said Ryan Hecker,
COO of FreedomWorks for
America, in an interview with
Newsmax.
Three days before the primary,
FreedomWorks for America
held a Rally for Mourdock in
downtown Indianapolis which
mobilized Mourdock supporters
to walk door-to-door and make
calls to voters.
Local WISHTV Channel 8
reported on the rally, saying that
“conservative political action
group FreedomWorks is leading
the charge in what they are
calling a final 72-hour get out
the vote rally to elect Richard
Mourdock, and retire Senator
Richard Lugar.”
Mourdock eagerly greeted
activists at the rally and took
questions from a cadre of
reporters. Mary Beth Schneider
of the Indianapolis Star reported:
“Mourdock said the support of
groups like FreedomWorks has
been ‘incredible.’ People who
think the tea party disappeared
— reports of their death has been
greatly exaggerated. They have
...CONTINUED
FreedomWorks
for America
Staff and
Activists
with Richard
Mourdock.
JULY 2012 • VOL 2 • ISSUE 3 • FREEDOMWORKS FOR AMERICA UPDATE
This page is paid for by FreedomWorks for America, FreedomworksforAmerica.org, and not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee.
been from the very beginning helping us, going door
to door since last October every weekend,” Mourdock
said. “They’ve been critical to all this.”
While our impact in the last few months of this
historic campaign was huge, building the network
to retire Dick Lugar and elect Richard Mourdock
actually began in early 2011 with the formation of
Hoosiers for a Conservative Senate. And from this
determined group of activists we built our network,
holding 15 get-out-the-vote (GOTV) and activist
training events in Noblesville (3), Elkhart, Warsaw
(2), Spencer, Greenwood (2), Lafayette, Indianapolis
(4), and Fishers.
Hoosiers for a Conservative Senate, led by Greg
Fettig, Monica Boyer, and Kristin Minor, also held
an Indiana Tea Party Convention on September 24,
2011 and officially endorsed Richard Mourdock’s
challenge to Sen. Dick Lugar. Once our members
spoke so did we. In true decentralized fashion, our
endorsement of Richard Mourdock followed their
lead.
“None of the outside groups were in here at that
time,” Boyer told The Atlantic. “We actually asked
FreedomWorks to get involved.”
“It was at that point that we knew, OK, this is real,
they’ve made a decision, and they came to us; and
they said, ‘OK, we’re ready, we want some support
now,’” said FreedomWorks Vice President Russ
Walker.
And we had reason to trust their judgment. Back
on September 12, 2009, when FreedomWorks held
our first Taxpayers March on Washington, Richard
Mourdock traveled by bus with our Indiana activists
to attend and speak. Mourdock, through his speech
at 9/12 and his challenge of the Chrysler bailout,
became one of the first politicians to embrace the
Tea Party movement.
“Instead of just taking a plane like most other
speakers probably would, he jumped on one of those
tea party buses that that were taking people across
the country — and just for the next 15 hours hung
out with Hoosiers on the bus,” recalled Hecker.
All of our grassroots organizing paid off on Election
Day as turnout in the 2012 Indiana Senate
Republican primary was higher than any recent
Republican statewide race in the Hoosier state
including the 2012 Presidential primary, the 2010
Senate primary, and the 2008 Presidential primary.
Early media reports of a “hijacked” Indiana
primary victory by Mourdock simply couldn’t hold
up. As the turnout proves, we just outworked Lugar
and the establishment across the board.
“Using the Internet, social media, and our service
center model, we are lowering the barriers of
entry for our members and sidestepping the
establishment’s gatekeepers,” commented
FreedomWorks President Matt Kibbe. “This
Mourdock victory is perfect example of our ultimate
goal: disintermediation politics.”
Victory in Indiana has already begun a national
groundswell for limited government candidates
in other Senate primaries including Ted Cruz in
Texas.
“Every activist around me before Mourdock’s
victory speech wanted to know the answer to one
question: how could they get to Utah and Texas?”
commented Communications Manager Michael
Duncan. “This is a national movement where our
activists in one state see those in another state as
brothers-in-arms.”
FREEDOMWORKS: SUPREME COURT DECISION ‘BAFFLING’NEWSMAX“The justification to uphold the individual mandate while
simultaneously admitting it is unconstitutional under the Commerce
Clause is baffling,” said Dean Clancy, vice president of healthcare
policy for FreedomWorks. “If a law violates the Constitution of the
United States, it’s unconstitutional. Any other decision is an act of
shameless judicial activism.
“The president promised us in multiple interviews that the healthcare
law was not a tax, and here we are today, on the steps of the Supreme
Court building, told in a highly partisan vote that the healthcare law
was upheld as a series of taxes,” he said. “The historical, legal. and
political significance of today’s decision is troubling.”
“Our work is far from over,” Clancy added. “Republicans must strike
while the iron is hot and immediately begin efforts to repeal the law in
Congress and replace it with a patient-centered system, which is the
most effective and compassionate option on the table for health care
reform today.”
DENEEN BORELLI NAMED HEAD OF MINORITY OUTREACH AT FREEDOMWORKSTHE HUFFINGTON POST“If you actually take the time to get to know the people in the Tea
Party movement, you see an amazing amount of diversity, not just
different skin colors but people literally from all walks of life that have
united around the idea that the government is too big and is spending
too much money it doesn’t have,” said Matt Kibbe, FreedomWorks’
president.
TEA PARTY GROUP AIMS FOR ‘WINNING BY BUILDING, BUILDING BY WINNING’CNN POLITICS“Whether they win or lose a
campaign, an election, a fight of
some kind -- did they come out
stronger than they went in?” is
how Brendan Steinhauser
Matt Kibbe, FreedomWorks
president and CEO, pointed to a
strategy that was “very consistent
with all of the left’s literature
on community organizing.” He
attributed a specific phrase that
the tea party group has adopted
-- “winning by building and
building by winning” -- to the
Sierra Club in the 1990s. “I stole
it from them,” he said.
“You literally just have to feed
the machine -- give them yard
signs, give them walking maps
[to help in knocking on voters’
doors], give them whatever it is
that they want to do and that
trumps all sorts of advantages
that the establishment has.”
(Kibbe)
FREEDOMWORKS: ‘NOT GOING AWAY’THE NEW YORK TIMES“We are not going away,” said Matt Kibbe, the president of the group.
“It’s time to double down on spreading the message that President
Obama’s individual mandate is an unprecedented infringement on
constitutional liberty, and to take that message to the ballot box in
November.”
FREEDOMWORKS IN THE MEDIA
Paid for by FreedomWorks, Inc. (www.freedomworks.org) and FreedomWorks for America, Inc. (www.
freedomworksforamerica.org) and not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee.