MICHIGAN LIBERTARIAN
November 2019

Volume 48:11

In This Issue:

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Thank you for all of the articles. Keep them coming with careful attention to our guidelines. We are now on a monthly publication schedule. Articles for the next issue of the Michigan Libertarian must be submitted to chair@michiganlp.org, newsletter@michiganlp.org and vcpoliticaldirector@michiganlp.org no later than the 20th of each month. This allows for publication on the first of each month.

The Libertarian Party of Michigan depends on contributions to carry out it's mission Please Visit us at MichiganLP.org and scroll down to the bottom of our homepage to gain access to our contribution form.

LEC Seeks to Fill Vacancy in Fifth District Committee Rep.

By Greg Stempfle, Chair

Michigan's Fifth Congressional District.  Cropped from public domain Wikimedia image.
Michigan's Fifth Congressional District. Cropped from public domain Wikimedia image.

The Libertarian Party of Michigan (LPM) is seeking a member of the party to fill a vacancy on the Libertarian Executive Committee (LEC). Fifth congressional district Representative Benjamin Dryke submitted his resignation earlier this month.

Per the LPM bylaws, we are asking members of the LPM that reside within the fifth district to apply for the vacancy. The LEC will vote on a replacement at our November 10th meeting. That person shall serve until the next state convention on March 14th, 2020 at Grand Valley State University. At that convention delegates who live in district five will chose a permanent representative.

If you are a member of the LPM, live in the fifth congressional district, and are interested in this position, please send a short written statement about yourself to LPM Chair Greg Stempfle at chair@michiganlp.org by November 8th, 2019.

The Libertarian Executive Committee

The LEC is the governing board of the LPM and meets about once per month, usually a Sunday afternoon. They hold about half their meetings in physical locations and they hold the rest via zoom video-conference. Physical meetings are also available to attend via video conference.

Vacancy In The Fifth District

The fifth district, is currently represented by Democrat Dan Kildee and covers the counties of Iosco, Arenac, Bay, northeastern Saginaw including the city of Saginaw, western Tuscola, and Genesee.

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Spring Convention March 14 at Grand Valley State University

By Greg Stempfle, Chair

Libertarians protest exclusion from 2008 US Senate Debates at the GVSU Eberhard Center.
Libertarians protest exclusion from 2008 US Senate Debates at the GVSU Eberhard Center.
The Libertarian Party of Michigan will be holding its Spring State Convention on Saturday, March 14th, 2020 at the Eberhard Center at Grand Valley State University in Grand Rapids. The primary purpose of this convention will be to select delegates to the Libertarian National Convention in Austin Texas, where the party will select its 2020 Presidential candidate.

Defender of Liberty Awards at Grand Valley State University

Because this convention will occur just two months before our national convention, we expect several presidential candidates to attend. The convention will also have a luncheon and will be followed by our annual Defender of Liberty Awards banquet. Please note that candidates for public office will not be selected at this convention. We will be holding a second candidate nominating convention in July.

Delegates! Get nominated by your affiliate

More details and registration information will be made available as they develop. In order to be a voting delegate to the spring state convention, you will have to be selected by one of our affiliates or unaffiliated regions. These county conventions and region caucuses are expected to be held between February and early March.

You do not need to be present at the Grand Rapids convention to be selected as a national convention delegate. Please email state party Chair Greg Stempfle at chair@michiganlp.org and Secretary Wendi Parker at secretary@michiganlp.org if you would like to have your name placed into nomination.

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Long-time Libertarian Creates Governing Body in Detroit

Scotty Boman proudly holds up petitions from Detroit District 4 residents who want a Community Advisory Council (left) District 4 Councilman Andre' Spivey (right).   Photo by Deborah Outlaw.
Scotty Boman proudly holds up petitions from Detroit District 4 residents who want a Community Advisory Council (left) District 4 Councilman Andre' Spivey (right). Photo by Deborah Outlaw.

Detroit, MI - At first glance it may seem ironic that a Libertarian would create a governing body of any kind, but this one receives no tax revenue and makes no laws. It has no enforcement powers either. Instead it is designed to bring more transparency to city government and provide a platform from which citizens may voice their concerns about government actions.

Detroit is subdivided into seven districts. District Four will be the second of those districts to establish a Community Advisory Council (CAC). This is thanks to the effort of perennial Libertarian candidate and former state chair Scotty Boman. He spent his summer collecting 1,570 signatures on a petition to create a Community Advisory Council for Detroit's fourth District. On October 4th the City Clerk confirmed that valid signatures exceeded the minimum threshold of 1,141 signatures, so the petitions were approved.

Boman, filed the petitions on Tuesday October 1st following a brief news conference with Detroit's Fourth District Councilman Andre Spivey. Spivey and Boman met up at 9:30 AM to answer questions at the Coleman A. Young Center, then walked the petitions down to the City Clerk's office. According to the Detroit City Charter, "The purpose of these Councils is to improve citizen access to city government." And "The City Council member elected from the non at-large district in which a Community Advisory Council resides, or their designee, shall attend all official meetings of that Community Advisory Council." Spivey and Boman also addressed the topic in the citizen comment portion of the Detroit City Council meeting which was held on the same day.

Boman commented, "In the course of circulating petitions to constituents I found that one of the most popular provisions was that a CAC may require that the City Council representative receive prior consultation from the Community Advisory Council on all issues which relate exclusively to that district. This makes the City Council more transparent and helps residents to become better informed about what their local government is doing. In some respects it's a watchdog group of the City Council.

Boman made it clear that the CAC won't get a dime of tax money. "Some people were concerned that creating an organization with seven office holders would strain the city's limited budget at a time when many retirees continue to suffer from lost benefits in the wake Detroit's bankruptcy. I wouldn't have undertaken this effort if it would add an additional burden on taxpayers. The Charter is clear on this. It says, 'Community Advisory Councils shall receive no appropriations from city funds, but may accept donations or grants in accordance with state, federal or local law.'"

One thing that may interest Libertarians about the CAC is that it is the only governing body in Detroit to have a seat reserved for a person under 18. The Libertarian Party has no minimum age for delegates or officers and a 14 year old delegate almost became national chair in 1993.

According to the Charter,

Each Community Advisory Council shall consist of five (5) members elected from a single non at-large district, who shall be residents and qualified and registered voters of the district; one (1) youth member between the ages of thirteen (13) and seventeen (17); and one (1) member selected as a representative for senior issues.
The five elected members of the Fourth District Community Advisory Council will be chosen in the 2020 General election.

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Officers & Staff

General Contact: Libertarian Party of Michigan: PO Box 27065, Lansing, MI 48909; Phone: 888.FREE.NOW.

Chair: Greg Stempfle. chair@michiganlp.org
First Vice Chair: Ben Boren. vcaffiliates@michiganlp.org
Second Vice Chair: Jamie Lewis vcpoliticaldirector@michiganlp.org
Secretary: Wendi Parker. secretary@michiganlp.org
Treasurer: Norman Peterson. treasurer@michiganlp.org
District 1 Rep: Dana Carver. dist1rep@michiganlp.org
District 2 Rep: Vacant. dist2rep@michiganlp.org
District 3 Rep: Nathan Hewer. dist3rep@michiganlp.org
District 4 Rep: Will White. dist4rep@michiganlp.org
District 5 Vacant. Read about it here. dist5rep@michiganlp.org
District 6 Rep: Antonio Smith. dist6rep@michiganlp.org
District 7 Rep: Jason Rees. dist7rep@michiganlp.org
District 8 Rep: Jeff Wood. dist8rep@michiganlp.org
District 9 Rep: Mike Saliba. dist9rep@michiganlp.org
District 10 Rep: Catherine Filus. dist10rep@michiganlp.org
District 11 Rep: Jerry Bloom. dist11rep@michiganlp.org
District 12 Rep: Lawrence W. Johnson. dist12rep@michiganlp.org
District 13 Rep: Jeremy Morgan. dist13rep@michiganlp.org
District 14 Rep: Tim Yow. dist14rep@michiganlp.org

Judicial Committee Members

Kerry Morgan. judicialcommittee@michiganlp.org
Ken Proctor. judicialcommittee@michiganlp.org
Katie Nepton. judicialcommittee@michiganlp.org

Volunteers

Webmaster: In Transition. Webmaster@MichiganLP.org
Newsletter Editor: Scotty Boman. newsletter@michiganlp.org
Deputy Editors: Norman Peterson & Mary Buzuma. newsletter@michiganlp.org
Ciculation Director: Catherine Filus.Catherine Filus catherine@catherinefilus.com

Affiliate Contacts

Capital Area: Luke Sciberras, Chair. 248-302-1064, capitalarealp@gmail.com
https://capitalarealp.wordpress.com
Genesee County: Chair Alex Cooper, alexcooperliberty@gmail.com.
https://www.facebook.com/LPGCMI
Huron-Raisin: James Hudler, (734) 475-9792, james.hudler@gmail.com
https://lpwc.wordpress.com
Jackson-Hillsdale: Norman Peterson, (269) 330-2980 norman.peterson@comcast.net
https://www.jhlp.org
Livingston County: James Weeks II, (810) 422-8769, j.weeks@riseup.net
http://livingstonlibertarians.org
Macomb County: Mike Saliba, chair@macomblp.org
https://macomblp.org
Mid-Michigan: Tim Yow. vcaffiliates@michiganlp.org
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1356267337769739
Northeast-Lower: Zach Boyle, 989-255-4521, livovivo@gmail.com
Northern Lower: Dana Carver, danacarver103@yahoo.com
Northwest Michigan: Donna Gundle-Krieg. nwmichiganlibertarians@gmail.com
www.nwmichiganlibertarians.org
Oakland County: Connor Nepomuceno, Cjnepo1@gmail.com or Vice Chair Ben Carr at 248-919-8152
http://lpocmi.org
Southwest Michigan: Jason Brandenburg. swmi4liberty@be-innovative.net
https://swmlp.com
Straits Area: Chair Andy Evans, (231) 625-8403, . amevans_1968@yahoo.com
https://www.facebook.com/StraitsAreaLP/
Wayne County: Scotty Boman, (313) 247-2052, scottyboman@hotmail.com
https://michiganlpwayne.wordpress.com
West Michigan: Jake Andrews. (269) 967-4071, Email Jamie Lewis at jkl620@yahoo.com
http://lpwm.org

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Upcoming Events

Some events are also posted by their hosts at the Meetup.com site. The Michigan Libertarian recommends contacting an affiliate officer or check the Website (or Facebook page) associated with the meeting host (if they have one) before arriving at a meeting. Some meetings can get canceled, or locations can change with short notice. Contact information connected to most events can be found by expanding the item on the "Agenda view" of the Events page of our website.

November 5, 2019 - Southwest Michigan Libertarian Party (SWMLP) Monthly Membership meeting, 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
The SWMLP will meet at The Crew Family Restaurant, 3810 East Cork Street, Kalamazoo, MI 49001.
For more information, contact Jason Brandenburg at swmi4liberty@be-innovative.net

November 6, 2019 - Huron-Raisin Social Meeting, 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Aubree's Pizzeria & Grill; 2122 Whittaker Rd, Ypsilanti, MI 48197
For more information, contact James Hudler at 734-475-9792 or email james.hudler@gmail.com

November 7, 2019 - Livingston County Michigan Libertarians Business meeting, 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
The meetings have two parts:

  1. Meet and greet: Catch up with each other at 7 while we order food and introduce any visitors.
  2. Guest Speaker / Miscellaneous: If we have something going on that requires discussion before the business meeting, we talk about it. Occasionally, we will have a guest speaker.
The other meeting we have every month is the business meeting. At this meeting, usually held at our Secretary's home in Howell, the officers and volunteers discuss affiliate business. The membership is welcome to attend these meetings, which are announced at the prior week's social meeting.
Cleary's Pub, 117 E Grand River Ave. Howell, MI 48843
For more information, contact James Weeks II at 810.422.8769 or email j.weeks@riseup.net

November 12, 2019 - Libertarian Party of West Michigan (LPWM) Monthly Membership meeting, 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
The LPWM will meet at Buffalo Wild Wings, 2720 44th Street S.W., Wyoming, MI 49519.
More details are posted on the Libertarian Party of West Michigan Facebook Page, or link to the event page. For more information, please contact Jamie Lewis at jkl620@yahoo.com.

November 13, 2019 - Libertarians of Macomb County Monthly meeting, 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
Ike's Restaurant, 38550 Van Dyke, Sterling Heights
For more information, contact Mike Saliba at macomblp@gmail.com

November 13, 2019 - Libertarian Party of Wayne County business meeting, 6:30 PM - 8:30 PM
The new venue and day for business meetings is on the second Wednesday of each month at Leon's Family Dining. 23830 Michigan Ave, Dearborn, MI 48124. Phone: (313) 563-3713
For more information, contact Scotty Boman at (313) 247-2052 or email ScottyBoman@hotmail.com

November 17, 2019 - Capital Area monthly business meeting, 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
Harper's Restaurant and Brew Pub. 131 Albert Ave. East Lansing, MI 48823.
Contact Luke Sciberras at 248-302-1064 or email CapitalAreaLP@gmail.com to confirm location.
Times and locations may very from month to month.

November 20, 2019 - Northwest Michigan affiliate monthly business meeting, 6:30 PM - 8:00 PM
The house of Phil Lindsay. 7905 Hilleys Rd SW. South Boardman, MI 49680.
Contact Donna, the affiliate chair, or Ben Boren, affiliate vice chair for details.
Please see the Events Page for more information. Business meetings will focus on the group's goals of electing political candidates and conducting outreach and educational activities. Anyone is welcome!
The monthly meeting will be also be held electronically as well. For more information, please contact Donna Gundle-Krieg at dokrieg@gmail.com.

November 20, 2019 - Jackson-Hillsdale Libertarian Party monthly meeting, 6:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Speaker - To be announced.
Steve's Ranch Restaurant, 311 W. Louis Glick Hwy. Jackson, MI 49201
We encourage Teachers, Politicians and Public Officials to attend this meeting. IT'S YOUR TAX MONEY! For more information contact Norman Peterson (269) 330-2980. JHLP Website: https://www.jhlp.org/

November 20, 2019 - The Libertarian Party of Oakland County monthly meeting, Dinner at 6:30 PM, meeting at 7:30 PM.
Rusty Bucket. 30450 Telegraph Rd, Bingham Farms, MI 48025. For more information contact Connor Nepomuceno, Cjnepo1@gmail.com or Vice Chair Ben Carr at 248-919-8152

November 27, 2019 - Libertarian Party of Wayne County general meeting, 6:30 PM - 8:30 PM
Regular business meetings have been moved to the second Wednesday of the month. However we will now have a general meeting on the 4th Wednesday of the month at Livonia Elks at 31117 Plymouth Rd, Livonia, MI 48150. Directions: south side of Plymouth, just a short distance east of Merriman. Park in the back; enter through rear entrance. - Walk straight ahead through the vestibule, lobby area, and then turn down the hallway to the right. Walk down about 50' or so, and turn left into the short hallway; pass the couple of restrooms - and there we are!
There may be additional changes in the future, so please call ahead for future meetings.
For more information, contact Scotty Boman at (313) 247-2052 or email ScottyBoman@hotmail.com

November 27, 2019 - Libertarian Party of West Michigan (LPWM) Video Conference - Business Meeting, 7:00 PM - 8:00 PM
The Executive Committee holds a business meeting every month by video conference. If you would like to be a part of it, please contact Jamie Lewis at jkl620@yahoo.com to get a log in.


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If you are new to the Michigan Libertarian, you can link to 2016 issues here, http://michiganlp.org/category/newsletters . Other issues are preserved in our historical archives here: http://old.michiganlp.org/resources-2/newsletter.


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The Michigan Libertarian is a publication of the Libertarian Party of Michigan Libertarian Party of Michigan: PO Box 27065, Lansing, MI 48909; Phone: 888.FREE.NOW. The Libertarian Party of Michigan website is paid for with regulated funds by the Libertarian Party of Michigan Executive Committee, Inc. d/b/a the Libertarian Party of Michigan. Not authorized by any candidate.