Minutes of the America First National Committee

Saturday, June 1, 2002

BE IT REMEMBERED that the America First National Committee met on Saturday, June 1, 2002 at 9 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, pursuant to the call issued by the Chairman and Secretary as provided for in the rules of the party.

The meeting was called to order by the Chairman at 9:10 p.m.

The Secretary called the roll of National Committee members:

Present:

• John Verser of Arkansas
• Marcel Dietze, Pat Dolan and Wanda Weatherford of Colorado
• O. Gene Lovell and Diane Lovell of Georgia
• David Doyle of Iowa
• Guadalupe Lynch, John Wassenaar, and Maureen McHugh of Illinois
• Ryan Walters of Mississippi
• John Fey, James Edwards and James D. Jones of Tennessee
• Dan Charles of Colorado, Chairman and Treasurer
• John Pittman Hey of Mississippi, Secretary

Absent:

• Billie Deeter and Allan Hampton of Arkansas
• Phillip Carnaggio of Mississippi
• Jean Martha Groves and Ted Maravelias of New Hampshire
• Phil Anderson of Georgia

Trey Golmon of Mississippi, Jay Gardner of Iowa, and Francis Winters of New Hampshire joined the meeting after its call to order.

Romelle Winters, Public Relations Chairman; Rules Committee member Ed Moses of Iowa; and Roger Simmermaker, Chairman of the Reform Party of Florida, also attended the meeting as observers.

George Pangborn and Wes Anderson attended the meeting, first as observers, and then as members of the National Committee from the State of Texas.

A quorum being present, the National Committee meeting was opened with the Pledge of Allegiance. The Secretary delivered the invocation.

Mr. Lovell moved the adoption of the agenda that had previously been circulated by the Chairman. Mrs. Lynch seconded the motion, and it was adopted unanimously.

The Secretary reported receipt of a Petition for Affiliation signed by Mr. George Pangborn on behalf of the America First Party of Texas. The petition submitted the names of Pangborn, Wes Anderson, and Blake Buffington as the National Committee members from Texas.

The Secretary moved the amendment of the Certified List of National Committee members to add George Pangborn, Blake Buffington, and Wes Anderson as National Committee members from the State of Texas. His motion was seconded by Mr. Lovell and adopted by unanimous vote of the National Committee.

The Chairman gave a report to the Committee. He stated that ongoing discussions were being held with several established state parties about possible affiliation with the America First Party. He also reported on several other state parties that are in the process of petitioning for affiliation with the party.

The Chairman reported that the party's toll-free number is now operational. The number is (866) SOS-USA1. The Chairman described the features and costs of the system.

The Chairman reported that Patrick Buchanan had given the Party permission to publish his latest column on the party's web site exclusively for several days.

The Chairman reported on various media appearances and mentions the party has received in the past two weeks.

The Secretary delivered his report. He moved that the National Committee approve the minutes of the May 6 meeting that he had previously circulated. His motion was seconded by Mrs. Weatherford, and approved by unanimous vote.

The Secretary reported that he had made numerous improvements to the web site, and had implemented a feature for automatic subscription to the reflectors named "Informer" and "Chat". He also explained the purpose and usage of the other party reflectors.

A discussion was had regarding permitting non-party members to join various reflectors. The main issue centered on whether such persons might disrupt the reflectors and create a hostile environment for other prospective members who might then be driven away from the party.

Mr. Jones moved a resolution to apply the Rules for Reflectors which had previously been adopted, with paragraph 11 of those rules to be amended to read as follows:

"To be a member of the Chat reflector, a person must be a member of an affiliated America First State Party Organization, or where none exists, a member of an organizing committee for such State Party Organization; or any other person may be a member if first approved by the Party Building Committee."

Mr. Jones' resolution was seconded by the Secretary and adopted by unanimous vote.

Mr. Jones nominated Mr. Doyle as the moderator of the Chat reflector. Mr. James seconded the nomination. Mrs. Lynch and Mr. Lovell moved that nominations be closed. Nominations were closed by unanimous vote, and Mr. Doyle was elected Chat reflector moderator by unanimous vote.

The Secretary reported that he had recorded all contacts made by email or from the web site in a party building database, and stood ready to deliver the information to the Party Building Committee. He also reported that he had responded to many e-mails received by the party, answering specific questions, and that he would refer the several hundred generic requests for information and membership to the Party Building Committee.

The Treasurer reported that the party's EIN number has been received and the bank account established. The current account balance is $2063.

The Chairman and Mrs. Winters discussed Public Relations efforts. Both spoke highly of the other's contributions to press releases that the party has published so far. A brief discussion was had regarding untrue criticism by members of competing political parties. The Secretary stated that he and Mrs. Winters would circulate a confidential memorandum later suggesting an official response to such criticisms.

Mr. Jones delivered the Convention Committee's report on Site Selection. Contracts from the Holiday Inn in Des Moines and the Renaissance in Orlando were reviewed. Mr. Moses described the advantages offered by the Des Moines site. Mr. Simmermaker discussed the advantages of the Orlando proposal.

A detailed discussion of relative advantages of the two sites was pursued, together with a discussion of whether the convention should be held during the first week or the second week of August. There was discussion of whether the Holiday Inn should be patronized due to questions about its foreign ownership. There were also concerns expressed that Orlando may have too many distractions for the delegates.

The Secretary moved that the Committee vote upon the matter of whether to hold the convention on August 1 to August 3, or August 8 to August 10, with members casting their votes signifying the week they prefer. His motion was seconded by Mrs. Lovell, and approved by unanimous vote.

The roll-call vote was taken as follows:

For August 1 to August 3:

Mr. Verser, Mrs. Lynch, Mrs. McHugh, Mr. Anderson.

For August 8 to August 10:

Mrs. Weatherford, Mr. Dietze, Mr. Lovell, Mrs. Lovell, Mr. Gardner, Mr. Doyle, Mr. Wassenaar, Mr. Walters, Mr. Golmon, Mr. Winters, Mr. Fey, Mr. Jones, Mr. Edwards, Mr. Pangborn, Mr. Hey.

The Convention date is therefore set for August 8 to August 10, 2002.

Mr. Jones moved that the Committee vote upon the matter of whether to hold the convention at the Orlando Renaissance or the Des Moines Holiday Inn, with members casting their votes signifying either Orlando or Des Moines. His motion was seconded by Mr. Lovell, and approved by unanimous vote.

The roll-call vote was taken as follows:

For Des Moines:

Mr. Verser, Mr. Anderson, Mr. Gardner, Mr. Doyle.

For Orlando:

Mrs. Weatherford, Mr. Dietze, Mr. Lovell, Mrs. Lovell, Mrs. Lynch, Mrs. McHugh, Mr. Wassenaar, Mr. Walters, Mr. Golmon, Mr. Winters, Mr. Fey, Mr. Jones, Mr. Edwards, Mr. Pangborn, Mr. Hey.

The Convention site chosen is the Orlando Renaissance.

Mr. Edwards moved the adoption of the following resolution:

Resolved, that the National Committee hereby authorizes Mr. James D. Jones to execute the contract on its behalf with the Orlando Airport Renaissance Hotel for the party convention to be held August 8 through August 10; and further that the National Committee hereby authorizes the Treasurer and the Convention Committee to do all things necessary and proper to fulfill said contact.

The resolution was seconded by Mr. Lovell, and adopted by unanimous vote.

Mr. Hey delivered a short report from the Rules Committee. The Committee currently has three members, including Mr. Moses and Mr. Lovell. A reflector has been set up, and the committee has started to conduct its business.

The Chairman reported that, pursuant to the authority granted him by the National Committee at its last meeting, he had appointed Mr. Lovell and Mr. Jones to co-chair the Party Building Committee.

Mrs. Lynch moved that the Committee confirm the Chairman's appointments. Her motion was seconded by Mrs. McHugh, and adopted by unanimous vote.

The Chairman informed the Committee that there are persons who wish to be members of the party, but reside in states that have not yet been organized. Some of these individuals could make substantial contributions to the platform debate on the platform reflector.

Mrs. Weatherford moved a resolution authorizing the officers of the National Committee to admit non-members to the platform reflector at their discretion. Her resolution was seconded by Mrs. McHugh and approved by unanimous vote.

A discussion was had regarding a small political party which has asked that it be permitted to "cross-endorse" AFP candidates. The consensus was reached that this would be acceptable provided the candidates were clearly identified as AFP candidates.

The Chairman moved a resolution to create a Candidates Committee and appoint Mr. Edwards as its chairman. His motion was seconded by Mr. Jones and adopted by unanimous vote.

The Chairman had previously circulated a proposed resolution establishing the "Friends of the America First Party" fundraising concept. The text of the Resolution reads as follows:

RESOLUTION OF CREATION OF "FRIENDS OF THE AMERICA FIRST PARTY" PROGRAM

Be it Resolved, that the America First National Committee hereby creates and adopts a two-level "Friends of the America First Party" fundraising plan for individuals who are members of Affiliated State Party Organizations or live in states that do not yet have an America First Party State Party Organization, and that one level shall be called "Basic" and the other level shall be called "Advanced";

And Be it Resolved, that the "Friends of the America First Party" program is a fundraising, party building and promotion program only and participation or lack of participation shall not have any implications with regard to membership in any manner whatsoever nor imply or infer any greater or lesser commitment to the party;

And Be it Resolved, that for a one-time donation of $25 per year or a recurring donation of $10 per quarter, an individual will be a Basic Level Friend of the America First Party and receive a laminated "Friend of the America First Party" card, a subscription to the America First Party newsletter, and a collection of recruiting materials;

And Be it Resolved, that for a one-time donation of $100 per year or a recurring donation of $30 per quarter, an individual will be an Advanced Level Friend of the America First Party and receive in addition to the benefits of being a Basic Level Friend of the America First Party, an e-mail address to use that will allow the individual to send and receive e-mail under the address @AmericaFirstParty.org, and a promotional article of clothing with the official logo and slogan selected at the National Convention. The individual will provide the and it will be an appropriate name matching standards of decency. If in the judgment of the officers, a is questionable, such names may be submitted to the National Committee for final dispensation;

And Be it Resolved, that the "Friend of the America First Party" cards for both levels will be identical, laminated with the person's name and the party logo as described above on one side and the mission statement on the other side, except that the Basic Level cards shall be printed on light grey paper and the Advanced shall be printed on golden colored paper;

And Be it Resolved, that 25% of the funds raised through this program shall be set aside for party expenses related to the National Convention and in-person National Committee Meetings, and that 25% be set aside for Party Building and recruitment activities in the state of residence of each individual donor, and that the remainder be placed in the party general fund for use as the National Committee sees fit and to cover the costs of the gifts mentioned above and other expenses.

Mr. Jones moved for the adoption of the foregoing resolution. His motion was seconded by Mr. Lovell, and adopted unanimously.

There being no further business, upon motion made by Mr. Hey, seconded by Mrs. Lynch, and adopted by unanimous vote, the Chairman declared the meeting adjourned at 12:30 a.m.

Respectfully submitted,

______________________
John Pittman Hey
National Secretary
America First National Committee