Tall blue letters spell out “Enough Is Enough” and “Vote Libertarian” on signs leading to the Libertarian Party of Lane County’s first meeting in two years. Held in EWEB’s northern building on the banks of the Willamette, the meeting lasted four hours on Saturday – 7:30 to 11:30 p.m. – as county Libertarians gathered to discuss free trade, the gold standard, the writing of Ayn Rand, privatizing county parks, and Bush’s policies.
“I expected 10 to 15 people I knew to show to the meeting,” said Toni Nathan, LPLC’s county chair. Attendance was somewhat lower than expected – six people at 7:30 plus two more at 8:30 – but Nathan pushed ahead, approaching a new member about running for government positions in Lane County.
Nathan, who lives in Lane County, became the first woman to receive an electoral vote in 1972 when she ran as the first Libertarian vice presidential candidate. She has been an active libertarian since the party’s first national convention in 1971.
One reporter, she recalled, even asked her “who is doing the dishes while you’re out campaigning.”
But her enthusiasm for the party and its ideal is as strong as ever, and she greeted everyone at the door with twinkling eyes and a seasoned smile.
“I have a feeling that if half the independents knew about us they would be interested,” said Nathan.
Based on information from the State Elections Division, Nathan estimates the number of registered Libertarians in Lane County to be more than 1,500, and before moving in 1976, the party’s state headquarters were located in Eugene. In Oregon, only Multnomah County has more registered Libertarians than Lane.
Yet Saturday’s meeting was the first for the LPLC in two years.
“I got a phone call from some people who didn’t like the Executive Director,” said Nathan, “He was putting the party into debt.”
Those people eventually brought a suit against Burke for failing to produce financial records, which ended in Burke’s contract being cut short, she said. One estimate of the party’s debt was $40,000 and Burke may still be liable for some portion.
Here in Lane County, Nathan and the group that met Saturday are already focused on rebuilding. Nathan didn’t say exactly what that might entail.
According to their state Web site, the Libertarian Party’s fundamental principle is to allow individuals full freedom to pursue their choices without interfering with other people’s equal rights. They view government as intrusive to this pursuit.
“We oppose all interference by government in the areas of voluntary and contractual relations among individuals,” the Web site states. “People should not be forced to sacrifice their lives and property for the benefit of others.”
Party facts
Libertarians advocate smaller government, lower taxes and more freedom.
The Libertarian Party is the third largest political party in the nation. It has more than 200,000 registered voters.
The party has had its greatest successes in local elections.
The Libertarian Party was founded in 1971. Beginning in 1972, the party nominated its first presidential and vice presidential candidates. Vice presidential candidate Toni Nathan was the first woman to receive an electoral vote.
Source: www.lp.org