Interview - Gregory Arianoff (L), candidate for State Rep in Hawaii Seeks Needed Tax Reform

The following contribution is from Seattle-based independent journalist, David Malekar; who regularly publishes content to the WashCo Chronicle and other online publications.  The interviewee, Gregory Arianoff, is running for State Representative - District 3 in Hawaii as a Libertarian.  You can find more information on Gregory at the website greg4liberty.com and follow on Facebook at facebook.com/Greg4Liberty and twitter at @GregoryArianoff.

Gregory Arianoff, Libertarian

DM:  Thank you, Mr. Arianoff for the opportunity to allow our readers to learn more about yourself
and your campaign for State Representative District 3 in Hawaii.  What can you tell us about your 2016 entry into the race and what you are hitting head on?

GA:  Thank you Mr. Malekar for taking the time out of your day and making this interview happen. We live in a very peculiar area of the globe here in Hawaii, an area that for the most part is not really influenced by the mainland or the outside world and the state, as you know, is not a continuous strip of land. This creates a string of islands with their own climates, necessities, micro cultures, etc. That being said my main concern is the centralization of government and everything it brings. I want to restore Home Rule and get away from bureaucrats that live islands away making decisions for this island; a perfect example would be government's role in the local infrastructure and the education.

DM:  Many people in the Continental United States often forget that Hawaii is very separate as far as legislation is concerned.  Would you say with that in consideration, that Libertarian principles have an edge on your turf?

GA:  Like you mentioned, you have to understand the history of Hawaii Statehood. The Democratic Party created the State and Democrats have been in charge at all levels ever since. I think that Libertarian ideas have a better chance of being received than the Republican views. More often than not, I do find that when I question individuals about why they are Democrats, the predominant answer is, "because my parents are!" The more I continue the conversation, the more I find that people are receptive to Libertarianism; or at least I hear, "I didn't think of it that way," so I think it really comes down to education. Many don't know what we stand for because of the single-party rule that exists in the state of Hawaii, and very little political influence from the outside.

Gregory Arianoff with 2012 / 2016 Libertarian Presidential Candidate, Gary Johnson

DM:  With the political ideologies on lock-down within your area, what steps are you and your
campaign taking to break this cycle?

GA:  We will continue the education process. Spread the ideas of liberty one person at a time by engaging in conversations with the public as well as attending various public forums. The main tool in breaking the cycle we currently use is Social Media and Internet presence.

DM:  Speaking of Social Media, Libertarians are reaching their audience by this means very well. What social media links can you provide for viewers that want to connect?

GA:   Viewers can connect through Twitter: @GregoryArianoff, through Facebook: facebook.com/Greg4Liberty or by going to our website: greg4liberty.com

Gregory Arianoff with Support

DM:  Taking a closer look at your local campaign, what issue would you like to expand on for the readers, that may be overlooked by your opponents?

GA:  A very serious issue locally is taxation, Hawaii consistently ranks worst when it comes to either individual taxation or business taxation, creating a dependency on Government due to such dismal take-home pay. Additionally, where is all of these tax monies going? A couple of prime examples are; 1. The DOE with approximately 40% of the budget going to education and Hawaii remaining at the bottom nationwide. With such a high percentage already; throwing more money at the issue does not prove to be a solution, especially with talks of increasing taxes for the DOE.
2. Unfunded liabilities in Hawaii are probably over $30 Billion in debt! These types of fiscal delinquencies should not be tolerated and officials should be held accountable. If you or I did the same with someone else's money, we would have been jailed a long time ago.


DM:  What kind of kind of tax changes can residents expect from a Arianoff office both in the short term, and further into your term?

GA: The long term goals are to end State Income Tax for the citizens of Hawaii and to end the General Excise Tax. Having lived in States that do not have an Income Tax, I can see first hand the damages created by taking someone's hard earned monies. On the East side of the Big Island it would give families an average $4,300 raise to pay back debts, buy a new car, create a savings, pay their mortgage or whatever they would like to do with it. As far as the GET goes, you have to understand the nature of this tax, it is not just a simple tax, it is calculated from production to purchase and sale, this deeply hurts small businesses as they end up paying in some circumstances three times the tax rate! In the short term, it would be to introduce legislation that allows individuals to opt out of the tax system. It is morally wrong and unacceptable to force anything upon the people. The individual must be protected; so if an individual decides he doesn't want to pay taxes for education because he doesn't have kids, for example, then he must be able to opt out. By doing so he may no longer participate in the so-called benefits provided by the State. He should be given a choice - which is what we lack as everything is being forced upon us by a majority who have forgotten that we are a Republic and not a Democracy.

Gregory Arianoff and Family

DM:  Citizens will certainly take notice to the amount of relief that will be accomplished during your term.  Hopefully the citizens of Hawaii will embrace the much needed change and fresh ideas brought only from an Arianoff term.  Thank you for spending so much time with the Liberty Chronicle Independent and our readers.  In closing, what final thoughts would you like to leave with readers?

GA: My closing thoughts would be that I think it is important for people to know that everything boils down to the individual, just like our Constitution mentions. What are the individual needs, not what a group needs. If we perpetuate a mob mentality, then we end up with minorities and individuals being hurt and getting the short end of the stick.We need to sustain the non aggression principle that Libertarians believe - which ultimately unites individuals instead of segregates them, thus creating  better, freer markets, relations, and more individual freedom. Thank you again for having me here, thank you for what you do and it was great meeting you face to face. Less Government is more Aloha!

Michelle Darnell (48th-L) Press Release on Housing Crisis 6.6.2016

MICHELLE DARNELL, 48TH—L

Candidate

48TH LEGISLATIVE LD

WASHINGTON STATE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Pos. 1

Michelle for the House, 830 Kirkland Way, # 203, Kirkland WA 98033

For Immediate Release:                                                        Media Contact:

May 31, 2016                                                                           Scott Scrimshaw

                                                                                                   GaryJohnson2016@gmx.com

MEDIA  ADVISORY

        “If we want more affordable housing we must keep people in their homes and repeal regulations that are driving up housing costs”-Michelle Darnell, Candidate for State Representative—Libertarian, 48th LD (Bel-Red-Kirk)

    Michelle Darnell attended the 22nd Seattle King County Realtors Association Issues briefing, Thursday June 2, at the Bellevue Westin.  

At the briefing Mollie Carmichael, Principal with John Burns Real Estate consulting confirmed what Michelle has been saying since 2014.  King County has a housing crisis.   Inventory is alarmingly low and affordability is low.  Access to mortgage financing is limited with new regulations.

Michelle Darnell, a foreclosure defense paralegal and homeowner advocate, is actually aware of the situation as she helps homeowners avoid unnecessary foreclosure via the Washington State foreclosure fairness act. According to the Department of Commerce, less than 10% of homeowners participate in the program so they walk away from their homes.  There were roughly 4000 referrals to the program in 2015 and of those only 800 were able to keep their homes. “The WA FFA is failing because banks have no incentive to act in good faith.  After being told by the bank to stop paying in the first place, the homeowner has no leverage as their credit is destroyed and they owe so much in arrears.  The banks merely go through the motions on the way to foreclosure.” When elected Michelle  says she would work to fix this by either repealing the Deed of Trust act or amending it so homeowners have a fairer chance to retain their homes without having to file an expensive lawsuit.   “We have empty homes dotting this state like bodies on a battlefield and rising rents and homeless spilling out on to the streets.  This causes a whole host of other problems.  I am running to fix this problem.”

Another problem is the burden regulation that is increasing the cost of building affordable housing. “I was recently told there is a 100 year lag in innovation because of regulations that are stifling innovative systems and product like hemp products.  These products are more energy efficient and can bring down the cost of building affordable housing but builders can’t get occupancy permits because they do not pass code.”  Michelle says that many of these codes have been engineered by industries manipulating the market by using their lobbying power.  “I support all business but when big business controls the market,  that is not free enterprise that is corporate socialism.” says Darnell.

“According to her legislative newsletter, my opponent would hope to address homelessness by investing in temporary solutions.  I would address the problem by working to keep people in their homes and by bringing down the cost of building affordable housing.  These are permanent solutions” states Darnell.

Michelle says this is an important issue in her district because people moving to the area to support our tech industry need affordable housing and building affordable housing creates jobs.  Further she says that the problems caused by homelessness are impacting our community.  “As people are flushed out of Seattle, they are coming east to try to find work and places to live” state Michelle.  Also, foreclosures themselves bring down property values of adjacent homes, she states.

www.facebook.com/mdarnellwashington
www.twitter.com/darnell4change
www.michelleforthehouse.com

Michelle adds that she is happy that at least the problem is being discussed because in 2014, when she tried to call attention to it, few legislators or candidates even recognized the problem.  “Recognizing the problem is a first step.  Now let’s do the hard work of increasing the availability of affordable housing.  This is good for industry and families.”

    For more information   about Michelle’s approach to solving housing issues her campaign in general, please go to: michelleforthehouse.com

Scott Scrimshaw

Press Secretary, 541-399-0195

Michelle Darnell (48th-L) Announcement Press Release 5.31.2016

MICHELLE DARNELL, 48TH—L

Candidate

48TH LEGISLATIVE LD
WASHINGTON STATE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Pos. 1

Michelle for the House, 830 Kirkland Way, # 203, Kirkland WA 98033

For Immediate Release:                                                             Media Contact:

May 31, 2016                                                                               Scott Scrimshaw

                                                                                                     GaryJohnson2016@gmx.com

MEDIA ADVISORY

          “We made history this weekend”-Michelle Darnell, Candidate for State Representative—Libertarian, 48th LD (Bel-Red-Kirk)

           Kirkland paralegal and consumer advocate Michelle Darnell, returned Monday from the National Libertarian Convention in Orlando Florida where former New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson and former Massachusetts governor Bill Weld narrowly earned the nomination of the Libertarian Party.

              “There were times, I thought it may not happen” says the Washington delegate.  “There was even some division in our delegation, but at the end of the day we chose the candidates with the most experience so once elected they can get the job done.”

              An NBC/News/ Wall Street Journal poll, this month, f0und that 47% of registered voters would consider a third party candidate if Mr. Trump and Mrs. Clinton where the major party nominees.  The time has come for a third party choice that reflects the “socially accepting/fiscally responsible” message of the Libertarian Party.

              Michelle was especially pleased to have assurances directly from Johnson and Weld that their administration would prosecute bank fraud.  Bill Weld served as U. S Attorney and also a prosecutor and is known for prosecuting corruption.  “After speaking to Mr. Weld and Mr. Johnson, I am confident in this ticket.  It brings me great hope for this country.”

Michelle Darnell
www.facebook.com/MDarnellWashington
www.twitter.com/Darnell4Change
www.michelleforthehouse.com

              Ms. Darnell feels that the rise of the Libertarian Party in the polls and in media, will spill over on to her down-ticket campaign as she seeks to be the first Libertarian female elected t0 a state office in the nation.  “The Libertarian party did me a favor this weekend electing these two men.  Now it is time to unite as a party and get the job done.”

              The campaign, Michelle for the House, is hosting a kick off on June 18th.  For more information or tickets, please go to: michelleforthehouse.com

Scott Scrimshaw

Press Secretary, 541-399-0195

Libertarian Presidential Candidate Debate Coverage at the LNC Orlando, FL 5.28.2016

Libertarian Presidential Candidate Debate Coverage at the LNC Orlando, FL 5.28.2016

Part 1

Part 2






The following contribution is from Seattle-based independent journalist, David Malekar; who regularly publishes content to the WashCo Chronicle and other online publications.

Vice Presidential candidate Alicia Dearn Interview before Libertarian Party National Convention Vote 2016

The following contribution is from Seattle-based independent journalist, David Malekar; who regularly publishes content to the WashCo Chronicle and other online publications.  The interviewee, Alicia Dearn, is running for Vice President of the United States of America as a Libertarian.  You can find more information on Alicia at the website www.dearn2016.com and follow on Facebook at facebook.com/Alicia-Dearn-for-Vice-President.

Alicia Dearn, VP Candidate for Libertarian Party 2016

DM:  Thank you Alicia for taking the time during this very busy week for all candidates in the Libertarian Party.  This is the weekend where the Presidential/Vice Presidential candidates are being decided for the Libertarian Party, in Orland.  Your aim for Vice President candidate of the Libertarian Party has certainly gained a lot of momentum.  Would you be able to let our readers know some more information on how everything has brought you to the grand stage for 2016?

AD:  Thank you for your time as well. I have been a Libertarian all my life, but I didn’t become active in the party until late 2011. Since that time, I have worked on things mostly as a volunteer lawyer for different Libertarians and on ballot access. I also share Libertarian ideas widely in my professional writing and marketing – in my day job, I represent small businesses who are being crushed under the boot of big government and so my clients would benefit greatly from a Libertarian society. A couple months ago, I was approached by some women in the party to run for VP and they convinced me that I could share the Libertarian message to a much wider audience in that role. How could I refuse that call of duty?


DM:  You certainly have answered that call.  I want to go into more detail with your current campaign, but let's side track for a second and talk about your work getting Libertarians on ballots.  We are at the point now, where Libertarians are on the ballot in all 50 states in 2016 (by the time of election).  How much of a challenge and what efforts were needed to get such a task complete

AD:  Libertarians aren’t quite on the ballot in all 50 states yet. There are several states that have big, and expensive, signature drives going on at this very moment. For example, both Illinois and Pennsylvania have a lot of resources being poured into them right now for ballot access. We need more donations and more volunteers. And come summertime, we will start being sued, and we will need lawyers to defend us.

Our nominees will be on all 50 ballots. But unfortunately, we likely won’t have ballot access in Ohio thanks to the actions of Gov. Kasich. That state will have our candidates listed not as Libertarians, but rather as independents, because we weren’t able to meet their high signature requirements and the Ohio party’s lawsuit just failed. I am trying a last ditch effort to get the resources for that signature drive, but we only have until July 6 and it is looking grim. I hope to assist Ohio with recovering the Libertarian ballot access in 2017.

Ballot access is a major problem for so-called minor parties every year. It costs us hundreds of thousands of dollars and thousands of volunteer hours each cycle. And like we’re Sisyphus, it’s a boulder we have to push up hill over and over again.

Alicia Dearn working from anywhere and everywhere

DM:  Despite all of the odds being stacked against Third-Parties, the Libertarian Party has certainly
overcome many obstacles along the way because of efforts like yourself.  Is there any other information you can provide for readers that will allow them to help out with this cause?

AD:  We need money and volunteers to finish up our ballot drives and to pursue lawsuits and defense. Readers who are interested in volunteering or donating to ballot access efforts can go to http://dearn2016.com to volunteer or http://donate.dearn2016.com to donate. I will be happy to make sure that resources and volunteers get to the right places. We will also be running various money bombs and petitioning events over the next several months, and signing up as a volunteer will ensure that I have your information for these events so I can keep you in the know.

DM:  Switching back to your campaign, what will you do as the Libertarian VP candidate going into the election in November?  How will you be able to further push ahead your Presidential candidate with your skills?  The Presidential candidates should take your answer into high consideration.

AD: Like most good VP candidates, I can help in three main areas: 1. Stumping; 2. Fundraising; and 3. Coalitions and Outreach. More specifically:

1. I plan to be on the trial and in media making speeches and answering questions on behalf of the campaign. I’m an able speaker and debater. My skills will compliment the speaking skills of our nominee. Also, as the VP candidate, I will be expected to attack the other candidates, which is frankly an easy job when those candidates are Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. I can attack Hillary Clinton without being labeled a woman-hater.
2. The VP nominee attends fundraisers and works on obtaining grassroots and big funders when the Presidential nominee is otherwise occupied with campaigning. I will be able to easily and enthusiastically sell our nominee to potential donors, and I’m not afraid to fund-raise. When I was the Midwest Regional Director for GJ2012, my region had the most successful fundraisers for the campaign.
3. Building a coalition of Libertarians within the party is important. We cannot win without all hands on deck. I’m mostly accepted by all factions within the Libertarian party because I am true gold Libertarian and an activist within the party. I also think it is important to coalition build outside the party to grow it. One of my greatest desires as a candidate is to work with local candidates to help with local outreach. I also want to work with activists within the party to empower them to bring underrepresented groups into the party. I will start with women business owners, as there are millions of them.

2016 LP VP Candidate Alicia Dearn

DM:  I know things are very busy for you right now and time is critical.  I want to thank you again
for taking the time on short notice to sit down with the Liberty Chronicle Independent.  In closing, what final thoughts would you like to leave our readers?  The floor is yours.

AD:  Liberty is about more than me. Liberty means hope for people to be more than they are today. Liberty means trusting people to make their own decisions. Liberty means prosperity for the poorest and opportunity for the disenfranchised. If given the chance, I will be proud to represent this party. I can't wait to stand up in front of millions of Americans and say, "I am a Libertarian. And you should be too."

Michelle Darnell (48th-L) Announcement Press Release 5.20.2016

MICHELLE DARNELL, 48TH—L

Candidate

48TH LEGISLATIVE DISTRICT - WASHINGTON STATE HOUSE
Pos. 1  v.  Dem. Patty Kuderer
Michelle Darnell for the House, 830 Kirkland Way, # 203, Kirkland WA 98033

For Immediate Release:                                                        Media Contact:
Friday , May 20, 2016                                                           Jeff E. Jared 206-696-2457
                                                                                              jeffjared3@gmail.com

MEDIA  ADVISORY

    Michelle Darnell, a populist-libertarian, filed yesterday for office against Democrat State Representative from the 48th District (Bel-Red-Kirk), Patty Kuderer, who is a Kirkland attorney appointed last year to fill the vacancy left by fellow Democrat Ross Hunter.
 
    Michelle ran 2 years ago as a Republican for State Senate against Democrat Cyrus Habib.  She is now running as a Libertarian for State House.

    "I'm for educational choice while my opponent voted against the recent charter school bill.  I thought Democrats were for choice," Ms. Darnell said.  "I'm for choice in your personal life, and your business life.  I am socially accepting and economically conservative."

    "I want Republican votes, Democratic votes, Libertarian votes and independent votes," she said.

    The paralegal and mother of 4 wants to repeal the B & O tax in favor of small business and wants to help homeowners facing foreclosure.

    "Elite Democrats in Olympia haven't done much for the working and middle class.  If I get to Olympia, that'll change."

Michelle Darnell, 48th Legislative District Libertarian candidate for Washington State
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/MDarnellWashington

    A win in the swing 48th Legislative District would make Michelle Darnell the first female Libertarian elected to partisan office in the nation.

Jeff E. Jared

Policy Advisor

michelleforthehouse.com

Disgruntled Voter? Choose Liberty

Party divisions seem to be rather high in this round of presidential elections.

With large supporters for non-establishment candidates, voters should ask themselves - can the candidate I'm voting for actually change my party to be more in line with my values? Will the candidate I'm voting for protect my personal freedoms and liberties?

Sanders and Trump are both symptoms of a problem here in the United States, but not the cure.

Voters are realizing there is something fundamentally wrong with both Republican and Democrat parties, but are still holding on to the illusion that the parties are the solution.

For decades, this country has flip-flopped between political parties because of dissatisfaction with the other party. If the party you voted against 8 years ago couldn't make things better then, why would you think they can make things better now?

The first step in solving a problem is recognizing there is one. The problem in our great nation is not who's running for election in both major parties, but the two parties themselves. Both parties stray further and further from the center, and in the end, neither has the country's best interests at heart.

Some would say, a vote for a 3rd party is a wasted vote. I challenge that a vote for the lesser of two evils is still a vote for evil, not a vote for change, would be more of a wasted vote than a vote for a 3rd party candidate who wants to actually implement real change.

I've also heard many say they aren't going to vote this year, because they don't like the two major candidates. Do not place the fate of this country in others' hands, and idly stand by while the failed two-party system continues. Come out, vote Libertarian, and help effect real change in this great nation.

The Libertarian Party wants to take over, just so the government will leave you alone.

Ken Buckler is the editor of the Liberty Chronicle Independent.

US Senate for WA candidate, Michael Luke (L) Interview

The following contribution is from Seattle-based independent journalist, David Malekar; who regularly publishes content to the WashCo Chronicle and other online publications.  The interviewee, Michael Luke, is running for US Senate for Washington State.  You can find more information on Michael at the website http://luke4senate.com and follow him on Facebook at facebook.com/Mike-Luke-for-US-Senate.

Michael Luke speaking at the LPWA Convention 4.9.2016

DM:  Welcome Michael and thank you for taking the time out for our readers to talk about your
platform. Let's start with an introduction on a little about you and what you're doing for this run?

ML:  Thank you David.
I’m 46 and have been a resident of Snohomish County, Washington for the last 20+ years. I have previously been a small business owner in the Edmonds area for 12+ years. I have run locally for Fire district commissioner and County charter review commissioner. I have volunteered and worked on other candidate campaigns for offices such as County Executive, US Senate, and various other congressional, state and local campaigns.

My political experience is mostly from my involvement in the Republican party since 2008 as a delegate, precinct committee officer, legislative district chair and Snohomish County Republican party executive board member. In January 2016 I left the Republican party in favor of involvement in the Libertarian party. The Libertarian party allows me as an individual to be independent and resolved in contrast to my experience in the Republican party, that still by default operates as a top down orders from headquarters business model with just people fighting about being in top jobs in the party and maintaining control of the grassroots, not accepting control from them. Therefore the Republican party is no longer a viable political option in Washington state, even when Republicans win elections or gain legislative majorities they still seem to lose to so called opposition policy to some degree or another by tacitly going along with the status quo for the sake of bipartisanship, demonstrating a lack of substance and resolve.

Regarding what I'm doing for this run. This is a low budget campaign, I don't want anybody else's money to influence anything, I'm not currently taking or authorizing any outside contributions.
(website link: luke4senate.com/contribute)

I'm not going to be a yard sign or bumper sticker candidate. I will make myself and my positions on issues available to the electorate via the internet and social media for them to decide, but I'm not going to chase the voters, they'll either find me and find me to be the better candidate or they won't, it's in their hands to decide based on a lot more than which of us is the better salesman or spends the most money getting elected!
(website link: luke4senate.com/issues)


DM:  We are noticing a huge shift of people leaving the Republican and Democratic parties over the last couple years.  We have noticed a surge in 2016, while still early in the year.  The Libertarian Facebook page has broke over 600k likes recently.  With the amount of the momentum heading into this years elections for Washington Libertarians, how is this affecting your campaign and those around you?

ML:  I believe a critical mass of people leaving the Republican and Democratic parties in body, mind and spirit has been swelling up for at least a decade. People are far more open to hearing about and from a third party candidate these days. For so long so many simply dismissed and called the Libertarian Party crazy, but that appears to no longer be a consensus anymore. It seems to me that even people in my generation and surprisingly even from generations before me have even ceased accepting the stigma that has been placed on the Libertarian party for far too long by others within the other two parties.

There is now a whole new generation of young voters who could care less about political parties, they don't care about the likes of Bill Clinton or Ronald Reagan. These people care about issues, content, substance and resolve in their elected officials and so many elected officials from the two major parties are lacking in. These young people are not influenced by or fooled by hubris filled elites from older generations that simply self proclaim their credentials of authority just because they're old to maintain a dualistic group think status quo that only decays the future for the next generations. These young people communicate via the internet and social media which spreads information exponentially so it doesn't surprise me that there is a critical mass of people attracted to the Libertarian Party and not wasting time their efforts on the self serving impotence and apathy that rules the Republican and Democratic parties.

To answer your question, all this affects my candidacy and Libertarian candidates in a very positive way. I love being able to campaign on the internet to so many open minded, realistic and pragmatic young people that follow, share, comment and even dissent on what is posted. This is a healthy sign for our communities when people are not only participating in the process but actively seeking out more options and solutions than just what the two party system has attempted to force on the people.


DM:  What issues would you plan on handling, during your first six months in?

ML:  I would like to tackle economic issues and government spending right out of the starting gate. This of course starts with terminating and auditing the Federal Reserve bank which sabotages our livelihoods by it's very nature. When tackling government overspending you have to start with the biggest expenditure, which appears to be military spending and in order to lower military spending to a reasonable level we must scale back the initiatives we have allowed our government to order our soldiers to carry out. Another benefit of scaling back the military's role is a boost to morale, I wish to see our loyal soldiers brought home and charged with defending us, not other nations or policing the world.

I would further like to get the federal government out of any involvement in regulating marijuana and at the very least see it rescheduled it immediately with the goal of lifting the federal prohibition sooner rather than later. Sick people and parents of sick children should not have to risk federal prosecution and extensive incarceration just to obtain relief and healing.

Criminal justice reform must begin immediately, we have allowed the federal government and state/local governments across our nation to subjugate the Constitutional rights of so many just to feed those same people to a prison/police state industrial complex to sustain and grow what is an unthinking and corrupt status quo that no longer cares anything about justice or the people. This is a big issue with a lot to it so I am going to direct people to my website for more details on the issue.

(website link:  luke4senate.com/issues/criminal-justice-reform)

DM:  All issues you just mentioned, are in desperate need of dealing with.  Do you believe we will see a larger collaborative effort from the Libertarian candidates this year than in the past, for criminal justice reform?

ML:  I think collaboration in the Senate by the likes of Rand Paul, Corey Booker and I dare say even Bernie Sanders on this issue is already occurring. These folks may not be Libertarians but they seem to care about this issue. I would love to use whatever bully pulpit is available to me to trumpet this cause to build from what has already been swelling up. But to answer the question, yes.


DM:  Let's talk long term plans and goals during your term.  What do you want to see happen down the line?

ML:  Well, right away there are so many Constitutional rights that are in violation by governments throughout our nation as a status quo. I believe a priority is repealing laws that have exempted government servants from many of the same laws that oppress so much of our citizens. When government servants face the same hardships caused by too many laws and too much government interference in our lives I think government servants will take their oaths of service far more seriously to the people, not to the government. I want legislation passed that it is allowable for any person to record interactions with governments servants without informing the servant and even further if any government servant takes action to prevent the recording or threatens consequences that would be a felony. Proper monitoring of our servants will breed accountability and I'm not just talking about cops, I'm talking about tax officials, DMV personnel, any government servant. This type of policy may help to self correct so much misconduct by government servants.

The other priority is auditing but more importantly terminating the private Federal Reserve bank that has looted our nation's prosperity for around a century. They have sabotaged our economy and once they are terminated so many things in our economy will start to self correct.

Honestly, long term my goal is everything on my issues webpage:

(website link: luke4senate.com/issues)


DM:  What information can you provide for readers who would want to become more involved with your campaign in your area?

ML:  Obviously to start, visit the website and make your way to my Facebook page via the website. I can be contacted through the FB page or through the website.

It's really about people sharing and tweeting the website with people they know. Even more about liking, sharing, inviting and commenting on the Facebook page and other social and local media venues and the word will spread like wildfire.

DM:  It's been a very informative interview, Mike.  Many eyes will be on your campaign and we'll be sure to follow up with you.  In closing out, what information would you like to leave with our readers and any other thoughts you may have for them?

ML:  I think it's important to observe that Libertarian candidates are not just elements of the other 2 parties but are a completely different approach to government than the other two parties are. Libertarians are individuals first and foremost, I hope to see people vote as individuals for individuals.  Thank you!