Use the Midterm Elections to Create Awareness
by William S. Hahn, Chief Executive Officer
With elections around the corner, we have a great opportunity to get to know who’s running and organize Birch activities to let constituents know how their voting records (if they are incumbents) match up to their campaign rhetoric. We’ve touched on record vs. rhetoric in the past.
Let’s pick on Republicans as an example. When running for office, nearly all Republicans sound like constitutionalists. Their records — only once they assume office — will determine if their rhetoric was accurate.
The John Birch Society offers tools to help publicize the records of those in Congress and — soon — those in the 50 state legislatures. The Freedom Index and the Congressional Scorecards offer an overview of legislators’ records. Both can be accessed at TheFreedomIndex.org. The Index is a database of cumulative and current-session scores of lawmakers’ adherence to the Constitution based on their votes in Congress.
The Scorecards are individual handouts that list six votes and, when pertinent, estimate the cost of each bill per household. The provisions and constitutionality of each bill are described on the back of the handout. Want to grab someone’s attention on spending bills? Then show him how much it will cost his household! An informed and active electorate negates the argument for a balanced budget amendment. If an active electorate holds their elected officials accountable, then the number of unconstitutional votes will decrease and spending will begin to be reined in. (After all, you could have a balanced budget and still have votes authorizing money for unconstitutional causes.)
The new state Legislative Scorecards that we have started producing will, like their federal counterparts, also include six votes along with descriptions. But because they are new, the state Scorecards will carry the following statement: “This is our first state-level Scorecard; the selected votes may not be reflective of legislators’ overall records. Their cumulative scores will change as we add more votes. Please check regularly for updates.”
There are only so many votes we can place on this small handout, so one or two “bad” votes could certainly drive down scores. While this is not ideal, it is a starting point that will become more reflective of a legislator’s overall voting record with additional votes. We must start somewhere, and not doing it is not an option. As our first Conservative Index (predecessor of the Freedom Index) of Congress that appeared in The Review of the News on October 27, 1971 mentioned, “Our standards are admittedly stringent. To earn a 100 rating a Senator or Representative must have taken a position in favor of individual liberty every time, even on bills where the ‘right position’ was politically hazardous.”
And this was based on 10 votes for Congress. State legislators can be cut a little slack at first, but we should always help them improve and offer our support and thanks when they do vote correctly, no matter their party affiliation.
Be sure you know which elective offices are being contested. For example, my personal sample ballot from the online tool MyVote Wisconsin displays nine races: county clerk of circuit court, county sheriff, state representative, U.S. representative, U.S. senator, state treasurer, secretary of state, attorney general, and governor/lieutenant governor.
Don’t be surprised as to who is running when you go vote. Know the races and get to know the candidates. Discuss with them the real issues that affect our liberty and freedom, instead of those issues they get from polls. For incumbents, show them and their staff their Scorecard and suggest ways to improve. However, don’t do this on your own; plan related chapter activities. Coordinate the distribution of Scorecards and related literature in various neighborhoods and at community events. Pull together like-minded prospects into an ad hoc committee (run by members) and offer activities for both members and prospects.
Rather than just handing out the Scorecards, use the opportunity to also include an invitation to a future Information & Action meeting, video showing, or local speaking event. New like-minded prospects can then be introduced to JBS issues and solutions, allowing you the opportunity to measure them up for membership. We must always keep recruiting in mind, so we can bring in additional help, building the organization and its influence. Remember to avoid partisanship in your presentations, sticking only to the U.S. Constitution and the principles of the Founding Fathers when informing your fellow citizens, and not discussing the candidates’ particular party.
Be sure to make Birching fun. It is certainly an art form with many tactics and techniques. What works for one chapter in one area, may not work for another in a different part of the country. What makes the difference is that you use what works best and you keep doing it. Don’t be afraid to try new Birching techniques.
Our weekly e-newsletter has been transformed into an action-oriented tool that you can use to quickly learn Birching techniques that are currently being used successfully. Our first edition (Tuesday, September 13) gives the account of a JBS article exposing the Article V constitutional convention (Con-Con) posted by Dr. Robert Malone on his Substack account. Think of it as an online blog or column. When either Dr. Robert or his wife, Dr. Jill, publishes an article, it gets emailed to their 500,000-plus subscribers.
Dr. Robert Malone told us that his niche from his many years working in government circles was knowing how to navigate the system without drawing too much fire to himself. Meaning, he could overcome government red tape by knowing who to talk to and accomplish what he needed behind the scenes. Knowing of the fascinating journey of exploration and self-awakening to the Deep State and the Conspiracy that both Robert and Jill have been on for the last few years, their Substack subscribers must contain some rather influential people, including some who may support a Con-Con. So, when the topic came up during the dinner at the JBS Leadership Conference in August with Robert as keynote speaker, we asked about a Con-Con article on their Substack account. He thought for a moment and then enthusiastically said, “Yes, let’s do it.”
To learn more of the details and what followed, see the Birch’n e-newsletter at https://gojt.us/9pcy. The concept to learn and practice here is to target your Birching efforts to those who can influence key audiences. Ever wonder why JBS can hit and win above its weight class? It is because of the quality of people we seek for members, as well as the amount of influence they can wield in their networking circles. Not to be crass or disrespectful, but it’s the difference between recruiting prospects at a bar or at church. This is not to say that good people cannot be found at bars, but on the whole, which do you think would be more likely to be attended by local influencers? Our efforts should be targeted to those that can help us greatly further our mission.
With President Biden insulting and alienating half the country, it won’t take too long to learn about those in your community who are hopping mad and want to put their energy into saving America. Help guide them to The John Birch Society.