As previously reported on IPR, a fund raiser claims former New Mexico Gov. and Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson owes him more $100,000 in commissions and fees.
Jonathan Bydlak filed suit in federal court against Johnson, Johnson’s campaign committee, Johnson’s “Our America Initiative” PAC, and other defendants, seeking damages for fraud, breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty.
Hammer of Truth reports
On Tuesday April 24th, Judge Liam O’Grady dismissed the case citing a lack of jurisdiction over several of the defendants. In addition, O’Grady noted that no single defendant was being sued in excess of $75,000, the court’s threshold.
A copy of the judge’s order is here.
Hammer of Truth notes
Bydlak may yet still pursue his legal gambit by resubmitting in the correct venue, as we’re pretty [sure] he’ll do if he’s still miffed about that $105K he claims he’s owed.
Johnson’s campaign acknowledges that Bydlak is owed money, but disputes the amount, claiming it is only about half of what Bydlak says he is owed.
Also, on April 27, Johnson filed his application for matching funds with the FEC, claiming to have raised at least $5,000 in donations (with no more than 250 per donor counted towards the total) in each of 23 states. In IPR comments, George Phillies notes that the issue of whether Johnson’s campaign for the Republican nomination prior to December 28, 2011 and his campaign for the Libertarian nomination since that time can be counted as one entity for this purpose still needs to be decided, so the application is not necessarily a slam dunk.
Phillies reports
Continuing our coverage in the last issue, in February 2012 the Johnson campaign raised $41,879 and spent $40,917 of it. That total marks a major decrease in campaign income. In January, Johnson raised $65,592. February is a shorter month than January, but in February Johnson raised less than 2/3 as much. Unfortunately, in the same period, the campaign’s debts increased from $150,792 to $181,335.
In March, Johnson managed to raise closer to sixty thousand dollars, and paid his debt back down almost to $150,000.
Not sure what that has to do with this lawsuit, maybe I haven’t smoked enough weed yet today 🙂
Sounds like a fun party.
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So what do you think Johnson’s monthly Governor’s pension income is? $5000 $10,000 $35,000 like some of those Illinois Teachers I keep hearing about from that Illinois Tax Group??
PR@6
“promoting a much smaller national consumption tax with no prebate”
I don’t see any desirable situation where any Libertarian would promote any new kind of tax or a new application of an existing type of tax. There are plenty of different kinds of taxes already around. No Libertarian needs to invent (or promote) new taxes.
It’s not a “technicality”. They brought the case to the wrong court (if you assume the allegations are true, which the court does for the purposes of motions to dismiss).
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@ 3 & 4 & 5
Of course Johnson can do what he wants. He might even win the LP nomination with his negatives intact. He will, however, lose a lot of the financial support he could have had and find fewer activists excited enough to participate in his campaign.
This may be of no consequence to Johnson. If he isn’t really interested in promoting liberty or the LP, but only interested in promoting himself and vacuuming up enough funds to balance his campaign deficits, then he can proceed to bamboozle the LP’s most gullible into handing over the nomination to another flawed outsider.
Sure, the other choice – only one other is worth considering at present – is also flawed: All of our candidates have the ultimate flaw of being human. The problem is that Johnson’s flaws, especially on taxes, make it impossible to support him as an LP candidate for many Libertarians.
If Johnson were serious he would have picked up on this problem with his positions and he would have responded either in an attempt to explain and align his position with the long term goals of the LP regaarding tax policy and smaller government, which could be discussed and accepted, understood or rejected or he could have altered his tax position by promoting a much smaller national consumption tax with no prebate which could replace all other taxes, shrink government and come in at a constitutionally limited 10% rate.
If a so-called Libertarian cannot conceive of cutting the Federal Government back to the size necessary to fund its operations with a 10% national sales tax with a balanced budget and no other taxes, then that person is no Libertarian and unfit to represent the LP in any campaign at any level.
Trent, Anyone running for office uses their time to campaign. Gary could be out working for cash but is using his time to run for office. Your demand that he also not only forgo income but also spend money made from his past efforts sounds very… tax like.
Are you suggesting that the Libertarian Party should impose a tax upon its candidates for offices?
Funny, to make demands on someone or to try to force someone to do something against their will is very non-libertarian. If you disagree with someone don’t vote for them.
Z>Johnson comes with too many negatives.
TE: Let he who is without negatives be nominated first.
Z>The LP should send him packing, unless: Johnson commits personal funds in the form of a campaign donation and not a loan to pay off all prior debt including this lawsuit amount. A minimum of $250,000 in personal funds.
TE: Johnson has committed his time and energy to the Libertarian Party. Why should he accede to demands that he additionally invest money on top of his donation of his time? Given the number of LP supporters who believe that delegates should be allowed to participate without paying the $94 fee I would think that many people would also acknowledge that Gary Johnson has put in thousands of hours of effort and years of his life on the project of limited government. He has now joined the LP and I rather think that people will consider the LP and its ideas that might not have otherwise.
Z>Johnson must drop his support of the “Fair Tax” and drop his support for any form of tax “prebate.”
TE> Johnson does what he chooses to do. I think the so-called Fair Tax is a waste of time (at best) but Johnson apparently thinks otherwise.
Z> Johnson must also sign on to support the principle of non-intervention as his guiding principle in foreign policy.
TE> Again, just because you or 49% (or 90%) of the Libertarian Party says Johnson *must* do something isn’t sufficient reason for him to do anything or take any specific position. It is as incumbent upon Libertarian Party supporters to sell our ideas to Joe America as it is to sell those positions to Gary Johnson. I find it unlikely that Johnson is going to change any of his positions from what they were 6 months ago as that would disenchant some supporters as an indication of insufficiently ardent belief in his past, current or future positions (e.g. latent Romney-ism).
He definitely should commit to spending some of his own funds–I’d say to the tune of paying off his debt (yes, I know the matching funds can do that).
Johnson comes with too many negatives. The LP should send him packing, unless:
Johnson commits personal funds in the form of a campaign donation and not a loan to pay off all prior debt including this lawsuit amount. A minimum of $250,000 in personal funds.
Johnson must drop his support of the “Fair Tax” and drop his support for any form of tax “prebate.”
Johnson can either call for repeal of the income tax outright or call for a massive cut and replacement of the income tax with a consumption tax capped at a maximum of 10% with no prebate and all other taxes abolished simultaneously by Constituitional Amendment.
Johson must also sign on to support the principle of non-intervention as his guiding principle in foreign policy.