Topic: Presidential Campaign 2008
Trevor Lyman Continuing To Provide Leadership in Grassroots Efforts For Ron Paul The man behind the 5th of November fundraising money bomb which raised $4.3 million for the Paul campaign has been keeping busy with his latest fundraising efforts.by Walt Thiessen
(libertarian)
Monday, November 26, 2007
After helping lead the grassroots fundraiser of November 5th that raised $4.3 million for the Ron Paul campaign, Trevor Lyman has been expanding his reach by launching the Rudy's Reading List and Boston Tea Party one-day money bombs that are upcoming on November 30th and December 16th respectively. I had a chance to catch up with him by phone today from his new home in New Hampshire, where he has moved in an effort to continue to help the Paul campaign. It turns out that it's not so much a move as it is a homecoming. Lyman lived in Merrimac, NH when he was in high school, and he is thinking of making his return permanent in part because New Hampshire is the home of the Free State Project.
He said that besides the goal of raising some interim money for the Paul campaign and getting the Rudy's Reading List concept out there, he is also targeting a particular financial goal for this Friday's one-day fundraiser. He hopes to help the campaign top the goal of $12 million for the 4th quarter. The campaign has currently raised roughly $9.2 million for the quarter, which means Lyman is aiming at raising roughly $2.8 million for November 30th. Given the fact that it's just four days away and so far only about 1,700 have signed up for it yet, does Lyman think that the goal can actually be reached?
"Well [with the 5th of November project], 18,000 pledges brought us roughly $4.3 million. So I'd say we need about 9,000 to 10,000 pledges. We've got a ways to go....It's all about repetition.
"I put out a letter today and posted it to the forums, and it's getting a great response. The goal is to try to tie it to the major media. I did a little quick research today and found 25 stories that all reference fundraising efforts to reach $12 million for the quarter. Ron Paul just appeared on Bloomberg TV, and the very first questions was, 'Are you going to reach $12 million?' So it's a bit of a sensation. I've been trying to sell the idea to the people in the forums that we don't have to have a killer day. We just have to break $12 million [for the quarter], which [will require] just half of what we did before, and that media buzz will bring people to Rudy's Reading List which will help give Ron Paul such a jolt of energy.
"One of the main objections people still have to Ron Paul is that they still believe in the war on terrorism, as told to them by most of the mainstream media. So we can sort of crumple that a little bit more and get a little more coverage. It's one more repetition after the impressions left from the 5th of November coverage."
"Also, unlike with the 5th of November, this time we'll have the next fundraising day in place. So I believe we can funnel a lot of energy that way into the Tea Party fundraiser."
I pointed out that the Tea Party already has 21,000 signed up, and I asked Lyman what he thought would be the final total for that one. He said:
"Wow, I never would want to say for sure, but I definitely think we'll hit our [goal of] $4 million. Beyond that, I don't know, we could go to $5 or $10 million that day. It's so hard to say."
He hasn't had any time yet in New Hampshire to do any canvassing or other traditional campaigning. Nearly all of his time gets taken up with fundraising efforts. Yet, he's glad to be back:
"It's great to be around people in my free time, to be able to socialize with other [Paul] supporters, find out what they're doing. I've met people who have driven from Arizona and tons of other places. That's pretty impressive."
Lyman is also one of the major players behind the Ron Paul Blimp idea. He told me that they have had over $167,000 in pledges so far toward their goal of $350,000 for the first month of blimp rental, which will allow them to hire the blimp on an ongoing basis to fly all across America and appear at a variety of venues. They're already planning on having it flying over the city of Boston on the day of the tea party fundraiser. Lyman has been consulting with Liberty527.org founder Jerry Collette, and they're currently talking with the Federal Elections Commission about what they'll need to do to keep the blimp project legal and above board.
We also talked about what might happen after New Hampshire, and Lyman said he had already talked with two candidates for Congress in Florida and California who want to run as Ron Paul-esque Republican candidates on a similar platform. Dean Santoro is a candidate in Florida's 21st district which is currently held by Republican Lincoln Diaz-Balert, and Ted Terbolizard is a candidate in California's 4th district, which is currently held by Republican John Doolittle. (Terbolizard vs Doolittle...the comic pundits are going to have fun with that primary campaign!) Both candidates have contacted Lyman about doing fundraising for their campaigns. We may be seeing the beginnings of a new political operative career in the making.
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The views expressed in this
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Ron Paul winning the Presidency would have a trickle down effect. Once the American people see that their fellow Americans are hungry for the Freedom message, you will see hundreds of Ron Paul-Republicans and even some Ron Paul-Democrats and Libertarians running for office and winning. Once they take a chunk of the House and Senate, President Paul can really make a difference!
I am a democrat turned republican because of Ron Paul. I was able to see him give a speech last week and it was truly inspirational. Ron Paul's abililty to speak truth to power when truth isn't popular really struck me. The past couple months of following Ron Paul's campaign has changed me. He may not have enough snowballs to win the fight, but it will cause an avalanche in a few more years. I'm glad others are inspired to run for office in the mold of Ron Paul...er...as supporters of the Constitution, Bill of RIghts, and the interests of the average American.
We need to order Ron Paul winter clothing for Christmas now anyway, so we might as well throw in some cash for November 30th.
If the November 30th fundraising does well, I'll share my recipe for ham-apple pie over at Red State Eclectic in time for baking on Rose Wilder Lane's birthday.
I think its GREAT there are candidates coming forward to run on the RON PAUL PLATFORM.... I for one will SUPPORT ANY AND ALL CANDIDATES IN MY AREA ESPOUSING THAT PLATFORM AND REMAINING TRUE TO IT!!
Not to mention Trevor has the database now necessary to HELP .....REAL candidates... but I do stress REAL
I can't believe you are making a hero out of this goat. This man has tricked everyone who was working with him and who trusted him. They have all been duped. He promised to start that website for the Tea Party donation drive only and now he has decided unilaterally that he wants more money for other projects. So, he used the email list against everyone's wishes and against his express promise not to.
Now, Mr. Lyman seems to think he walks on water and can take the entire campaign in any direction he wants. He is spamming the entire email list on his own, sending people ridiculous messages asking money every day for another silly project.
He has abused everyone's trust, people have promoted this website only to have their friends and family bombarded with messages that Mr. Trevor The Great Lyman thinks are appropriate.
Mr. Lyman did not think of the Nov. 5th concept, he stole it from a meetup groupt that came up with idea. He was just the programmer who put up a website for it. Moreover, most people were turned off by the violent images he used on that website.
The only thing that made the Nov. 5th donation day popular was Ron Paul supporters and their love for Liberty and Freedom.
Trevor Lyman is a traitor and is doing his best to dilute the Tea in the Tea party with his multiple donation requests sent to folks on a daily basis. He is spamming the entire list that put their trust in him and he is hurting all those who put a lot of work into promoting this website and are now disgusted with what he is doing.
I will not be able to send anyone to this site until Trevor Lyman leaves forever. In the meantime, please do not listen to this man, we need the tea in the tea party to be strong! Do not dilute it by donating to every other cause he thinks of!
We must make the Tea Party a big splash. Donate all you can on Dec. 16th. Let's make the tea as strong as we can!
There is no reason to sign up to that site to donate. You must always donate to the website only www.ronpaul2008.com.
its strange how the message morphs, first it was that he was the greatest candidate since,...ever(ftr i agree) to the msm is blocking our candidate, to a surprised belief that he might win to a belief that he will win to how he will get what he wants done to the freedom message will infect the general population. the msm is still at the he might win stage.
I very much appreciate Mr. Lyman’s contribution to the November 5th and December 16th fundraisers.
I also think it’s important not to be lured into the kind of ineffective top-down thinking that the other candidates use. Ron Paul’s success is primarily due to his message of constitutionally protected liberty. This message resonates with Americans who are able to recall what “The land of the free and home of the brave” meant.
Beyond Mr. Lyman or Dr. Paul, it’s the message of liberty that is essential for America to rekindle at this moment in history. The groundswell that rose on November 5th is most likely to rise again when we stay focused on the call to liberty, rather than focusing on who makes the call.
If the Paul campaign needs an infusion of cash to make sure their message can reach voters in time for the two initial (and watershed) primaries of the election, then anyone dedicated to that message has a stake in helping if their resources allow. I know I have a stake, and will donate accordingly.
For those who value liberty, please donate as much as you can on both November 30th and December 16th. Don’t because Mr. Lyman asks, or because Ron Paul’s campaign asks, or because I ask. Do it because you value liberty and the constitution which was written to defend it.
Ron Paul has turned me into a believer! I have never been interested in politics before, but even I can see where the country is headed if we don't act now. I donated tonight and will again on the 30th and again for the tea party. Please heal our country and elect Ron Paul!
Whether Lyman bombards people with emails, proposes far-flung ideas, and illustrates "violent" scenes on his websites, the fact remains that he is a free US citizen, and has the right to generate money for his candidate whichever way he sees fit...as long as that way is legal. Without him, Dr. Paul would not have gotten the proper coverage, and America would not be gearing up for another "KAPOW" money bomb. Let's concentrate our efforts on making sure our man Dr.Paul wins this election. No need for inner squabling, if you don't want to support the doctor thru Lyman, just go to the doctor's site.
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