Funding Liberty! Table of Contents

Funding Liberty!

Chapter 3

Browne's 1994-1995 Campaign Finances

Chapter One described the Willis Invoice, Willis's surprising response, and evidence that Browne knew and approved of Willis's conduct. The Invoice was itself unremarkable, being simply a billing for routine fundraising efforts. Only in context is the Willis Invoice staggering. The context appeared in Chapter Two, where I described machinations involving Perry Willis, Bill Winter, National Chair Steve Dasbach, the National Committee, and the Browne Campaign. The Libertarian National Committee had clear conflict of interest rules forbidding LNC staff to support a pre-nomination campaign.  The limited available evidence indicates that, in violation of these rules, Willis and Winter were both part of the Browne campaign’s innermost circle.

While these behind-the-scenes machinations were happening, Harry Browne was running for President. He and his team raised money, appeared at state conventions, and tried to capture delegate support. Above the undercover politicking, Browne ran a perfectly orthodox Presidential nominating campaign, revealed by his filings with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) and presented here.

[This chapter is representative of the book I had originally planned to write, a book discussing where the money went. I intended to contrast Browne's Campaign spending and strategy with the strategies of other Third Parties, notably the far more successful Nader 2000 campaign. When I began this book, it appeared to me that the last two Libertarian Presidential campaigns had not been effective. The comparison with Nader, Philips, Hagelin, and other Third Party Presidential candidates was intended to reveal why Browne might have been ineffective, and what future Libertarian campaigns might do better. The Willis Invoice put an entirely different perspective on the campaign and on the Browne Campaign's political methods.]

The material here is largely from Browne's FEC filings. For each quarter or month, the filings tell how Browne's campaign spent its money. The interesting discussions are in the text. For many readers the money you see being spent here was originally your money, so you may have a personal interest in what was done with it.   I know that tables of numbers can be dull.  However, some people will want accountant-level detail before they believe my conclusions.

What sort of money does a Libertarian Presidential campaign handle? Here's what the Browne Campaign raised and spent in the two years leading up to the nomination:

Browne's Pre-Nomination Finances

The Table supports Willis's claim that in late 1995 the Browne campaign faced severe financial challenges. Up through September 1995, the Browne Campaign experienced growth, with income increasing quarter after quarter. It then encountered challenges.  Donations to the Browne campaign fell in late 1995 and nearly collapsed at the start of 1996. Donations in January 1996 were down almost 50% relative to the previous July-September.  Donations for the first quarter of 1996 were $134,468, far less than in any of the previous three quarters.  February 1996 shows a respite, donations more than doubling relative to January. If the February increase were due to Willis's December-January-February letters, Willis would indeed have made a significant contribution to Browne's fundraising. Without February's increase in income or reductions in spending, the campaign would by the end of March have been $35,000 in debt, an extremely large load for most Libertarian Presidential campaigns.

The actual numbers sharpen this qualitative picture. For the third quarter of 1995 campaign income was up to $171,000. In the last quarter, despite the approach of the presidential primaries income fell back to $149,000. Income then crashed. Quoting incomes as quarterly rates, January brought in only $97,000 per quarter, barely 50% of the rate of the previous Summer. While February saw a brief recovery to $204,000 at the quarterly rate, March saw income fall again, back (adjusted to a quarterly rate) of $102,000. Corresponding to the fall in income was a decrease in cash on hand, from $45,730 at the start of July 1995 down to $760 at the end of March, 1996. Cash on hand did recover by the end of June 1996, nearly up to $50,000, apparently because the campaign imposed rigid financial controls. According to the FEC reports, while the 1996 campaign's income rose markedly as the National Convention approached, its spending stayed nearly constant.

There is one question mark over this image of a campaign with strong spending controls. We have the contrary testimony of Dean Ahmad. In his June 2001 memo, he wrote:

"There is one other important element in the timeline relating the attached (Summer 1995) e-mail. Before this e-mail was written I had asked Jack Dean whether or not it was true that the Browne Campaign and/or the LP was in debt to the tune of approximately $100,000. Mr. Dean's response was 'I'll have to get back to you on that.' He never did get back to me, but eventually we learned the truth. For the benefit of current LNC members who were not around at that time: there was indeed a debt of that size."

If the Browne campaign was severely in debt at the end of the pre-nomination campaign, Browne had covertly demonstrated yet another way to capture a nomination, namely spending without thought for the future. For a nominee, campaign debt is readily discharged.   For a failed nominee, campaign debt is almost impossible to discharge. The nominee who is most willing to go heavily into debt, debt that he cannot repay unless he wins, has a significant advantage over his competitors.

We'll now look at how the Browne campaign spent its money in 1994-1995. Some items keep repeating. Most of the same staff members keep getting paid. The campaign invested primarily in convention travel and in mailing fundraising letters through a standard set of vendors. But there are also a few gems.

1994

The campaign organized in the Summer of 1994. Early announcements referred to two campaign co-Chairs, David Bergland and Douglas Casey. Bergland was the 1984 Presidential candidate, and author of "Libertarianism in One Lesson", an introduction to the Party philosophy that has sold more than 100,000 copies. Casey is an investment advisor. The Campaign also appointed an executive officer, Sharon Ayres, who was David Bergland's wife. By and by Ayres replaced Michael Cloud as the person seemingly running the campaign. There was also a Campaign Committee, a list of donors with no formal control of the Campaign's business. Over two years the Campaign Committee grew to include members such as former Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates Ed Clark, John Hospers, Nancy Lord, and Tonie Nathan, as well as notables including Party founder David Nolan and former Party Chairs Mary Gingell and Alicia Clark.

The campaign's July-September 1994 records show $15,395 in fund-raising, $13,000 of which was in the form of $1,000 donations. Expenses for the period include $877 to Kiana Delamare as reimbursement for supplies, and $501 to Harry Browne for travel.

For October-December 1994, the campaign went in debt to Harry Browne to the extent of $6305. It also spent roughly $43,000, including payments to people:

Kiana Delamare            $24,361
Michael Cloud              $  3,167
Stuart Reges                                 $  1,626
Lisa Paley      `               $  1,100
Harry Browne               $     728

and to vendors

Frank Gumpert(printing)             $3,340
Richard Mayberry(legal

         services)                              $   992

The payment to Browne was for travel reimbursement. Other payments are described as consulting and reimbursement for items including travel, office supplies, phone, and postage. The payments to Delamare were for consulting services, supplies, and travel.  This will be the last appearance of Delamare in the Browne filings.

First Quarter, 1995

For the first quarter of 1995 the Browne campaign raised $37,223, including 15 donations of the legal maximum of $1,000, and spent $30,366. Payments to people for consulting and expense reimbursements (under Federal law, the candidate may receive reimbursements, but may not be paid) included

Harry Browne               $8,989
Michael Cloud              $3,900
Lisa Paley                      $3,571
Stuart Reges                 $2,022
Sharon Ayres               $   750
Perry Willis                   $   578
William Winter             $   388

while payments to vendors (and the purpose of disbursements) included

Mount Vernon Printing (printing)             $3,300
Accumail (postage and mailing)                $2,922
Richard Mayberry (legal services)            $1,071
DS Mail for Less (mailing)                          $   600

The above was the first reported payment to Willis.

Second Quarter, 1995

In the second quarter of 1995, Browne campaign fundraising accelerated markedly. The campaign raised $148,000, a fourfold increase over the previous quarter, and disbursed $120,000, also a fourfold increase.  Major expenses included travel and mailing.

The LNC received $4765 for list rental. "List rental" refers to a critical part of direct mail fundraising.  To raise money by direct mail, you generally need a vendor who prints your appeal. You also need a vendor who addresses the envelopes, applies stamps or mailing indicia, and drops your fundraiser into the mail. Finally, you need a mailing list, a set of names and addresses where the mail will be sent. The challenging part of direct mail is obtaining good mailing lists. A common approach is to rent lists from other sympathetic groups. From the FEC reports and statements in the last Chapter, the Browne campaign regularly rented the primary mailing list of the Libertarian National Committee. List rental is not cheap; it may approach 20% of the cost of a typical Libertarian political mailing.

Different vendors may be paid on different dates, so the printing, postage, and list expenses from a single mailing may be paid over several months. Here the Browne campaign spent nearly $7,000 for printing, nearly $10,000 for stuffing and mailing the envelopes, and slightly under $5,000 for mailing lists and other matters. List rental was nearly a fifth of the total mailing cost. (Observe that Presidential nominating campaigns are sources of income for the National Party.  Candidates for the Party’s Presidential nomination must pay to use the National Party's mailing lists.)

Large disbursements for printing and mailing appear to correspond to Browne's May, 1995 fundraising letter, in which Browne proposed to make 'a 7 to 10 percent showing in the (1996) New Hampshire primary'. The objective was to establish Browne as 'the Third Candidate for President'  'by constantly advertising and publicizing me as the Third Candidate for President'.  To reach this goal, Browne hypothesized spending $270,000.

The $2000 to Perry Willis appears to correspond to an invoice from Willis to Sharon Ayres (National Director, Harry Browne for President)--not to be confused with the 1996 Invoice from Willis to Dean and Associates--as recently released by John Famularo. The payment, which was revealed in Browne's second quarter 1995 FEC Filings, is specified as covering ‘First Draft of Campaign Plan’.

Associates of the campaign were paid and reimbursed for expenses including

Sharon Ayres                  $26,331
Michael Cloud                 $13,818
Harry Browne                  $  6,848
Stuart Reges                                    $  6,680
Dean, Spear, Assoc        $  4,000
Lisa Paley                         $  3,936
Perry Willis                      $  2,000
William Winter                $     885

In addition to the people listed above, another half-dozen staff and half-dozen others were to receive modest amounts, to be aggregated in the final summation. Vendors received

Carlson Wagonlit Travel                                $12,007
Accumail (postage and Mailing services)    $ 9,871
LNC (shipping, literature, list rental)              $ 4,765
Mount Vernon Printing                                    $ 6,920
BB Duplicators                                                  $ 4,522
Time Printing                                                     $ 3,551
DS Mail for less                                                 $ 2,406
Postage                                                               $    900

Third Quarter 1995

For July-September the campaign raised $171,000, an increase of more than 20% over the previous quarter. The campaign spent a shade under $174,000. Disbursements to individuals, including consulting fees and reimbursements, included

Michael Cloud              $16,515
Sharon Ayres               $14,074
Autumn Wilson           $  9,730
Stuart Reges                                 $  8,315
Harry Browne               $  6,443       (repayment of loan)
Lisa Paley                      $  6,294
Robert Martin III          $  4,870
Dean Spear Assoc.      $  4,500
(J Harris Dean)              $     895
Terry Bronson              $  4,489
William Winter             $  1,142

Autumn Wilson is Autumn Browne Wilson, the candidate's daughter, who received just short of $10,000. Funds disbursed to vendors included

Accumail (postage, mailing services)       $23,278
Accumail (returned to campaign)              ($3,141)
Mountain Vernon Printing                         $20,012
Carlson Wagonlit Travel                            $15,735
Libertarian National Committee                 $  5,670
BB Duplicators (printing)                           $  3,475
DS Mail for Less                                          $  1,581
Liberty Publishing (list rental)                   $  1,556
Time Printing                                                $  1,529
Postage                                                          $  1,250

Once again, list rental is about 20% of the total cost for postage, printing, and mailing. 'Liberty Publishing' is the publisher of Liberty Magazine, the only independent large-circulation newsmagazine that regularly reports on the internal doings of the Libertarian party. As a result of its accurate and detailed coverage of Party activities, for the 2002 National Convention the LNC Staff and National Chair James Lark refused to give press credentials to Liberty Magazine’s on-scene reporter.

For a change, the campaign tried reaching out to the general public, rather than only talking to other Libertarians. Spending on orthodox advertising potentially to the general public included

National Graphic Center (bumper stickers)              $2,560
WGIR AM (Manchester NH)                                     $2,474
Alexander Buttons                                                       $1,216
WMVU AM (Nashua NH)                                         $   992
Newmark Sign Shop                                                    $   633

The radio ads mark the opening moves of Harry Browne's much-promised, short-lived New Hampshire campaign. Browne later announced that the unexpected Republican primary campaigns in New Hampshire were too much competition for his campaign to be heard. Unexpected? In 1996, there was an incumbent Democratic President, William Jefferson Clinton. It is difficult to understand how one could have expected anything other than a vigorous competition for the Republican nomination. Nonetheless, Browne cancelled his proposed high-intensity New Hampshire campaign. That cancellation set a pattern: Promises, fundraising, cancellations, and excuses, in that order, were permanent motifs of Browne and his campaign through two election cycles.

Fourth Quarter 1995

In October-December 1995, the Browne campaign raised $149,000—$22,000 less than in the third quarter—and spent $176,000. Some of this money may well have passed through the Browne campaign mail drop address located in the Watergate Building. How did this money reach the campaign? For November 7, 1995, John Famularo reports being told, by National Committee member Don Ernsberger, that mail pickups from the Browne Campaign's drop box were being made by members of the National Committee staff.  Such pickups, if made, would have been violations of Party rules as set by the National Committee.

Funds paid to individuals, including not only consulting fees but also reimbursement for expenses, include

Sharon Ayres               $25,284
Michael Cloud              $10,102
Autumn Wilson           $  9,616
Harry Browne               $  9,384
Lisa Paley                      $  6,362
Stuart Reges                                 $  6,180
Robert Martin III          $  5,312
Terry Bronson              $  4,746
Dean Spear Assoc.      $  3,000
Bill Winter                     $     688
Perry Willis                   $     465

while major vendors received

Accumail                                       $21,150
DS Mail for Less                          $17,668
Mount Vernon Printing               $  9,296
Carlson Wagonlit Travel            $  7,508
Postage                                          $  6,475
Time Printing                                $  5,540
BB Duplicators                             $  5,512
LNC (shipping, literature,                                                                                                                                                           list rental)                      $  3,801

Finally, spending potentially for outreach to the general public was

National Graphic Center              $     826

For the year 1995, the campaign spent under 2% of its income on addressing the public via advertising. The campaign did put the candidate on the road, but other campaigns would do the same as they got under way during the Presidential campaigning season.

In his 2001 apologia, Perry Willis said that he covertly supported Browne in 1995-1996 because Browne was doing outreach to the general public. As an abstract campaign policy—what should a Campaign do?—Willis's reasoning has a certain merit.  To win, a Libertarian Campaign must reach beyond the faithful and recruit voters from the general public. To build a Libertarian America, the Libertarian Party and its candidates must build a stronger voter and volunteer base. Those voters and volunteers can only by obtained by reaching out to people who are not presently Libertarians.

A certain question now arises: Where is the Browne campaign's outreach? Willis claimed that he supported Browne because Browne was doing outreach. Looking at Browne's campaign budget for the year, one sees hundreds of thousands for fundraising and staff, and thousands for communicating with the general public. Where are the outreach efforts that Willis said he wanted to support? Willis claimed to have broken party rules because the Browne campaign was doing outreach that required funding to support, but Browne's opponents were not doing similar outreach efforts. Is Willis's description of the Browne campaign plausible?

The Browne campaign occasionally promised outreach, in New Hampshire or CityVote, but that outreach largely never materialized. In early 1995 Willis might have believed Browne's promises, but by the start of 1996 it should have been apparent that there was very little real outreach. Had Willis simply closed his eyes to the reality of the situation?  Perhaps Willis had great faith in Browne's use of talk radio, though the demographics of political talk radio— typically older, less-well-to-do, highly conservative—do not make talk radio listeners a promising audience for much of the Libertarian message. Or is Willis's 2001 claim he supported Browne 'because Browne did outreach' to be grouped with Willis's fundraising letters: clever prose constructs designed to elicit specific responses from the reader?

Forward to Chapter 4

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