When the LNC adopted the Strategic Plan, one of the chief Strategies adopted was Strategy 3, which required a reworking of the party platform to make it a better document. Chief among the concerns was that many times our platform ended up being a liability for our candidates rather than an asset, but this was not the only problem with it. One of the worst criticisms heard was that the platform had degenerated into “emotional libertarian verbal diarrhea.” The language in the platform had become driven by emotion and personalities rather than being driven by principle and focus on our mission statement. Over time the pet projects of various platform committees and the pet planks of various committee members had caused the platform to lose its effectiveness and become distorted.
With the input of many committee members and the suggestions of some of the party’s philosophers, it was decided that what was needed was not just a rewrite, but the imposition of a logical format that would permanently remove the personalities from the platform and instead mandate a strict adherence to principle and clarity, with an eye towards being an effective tool for our candidates. The four point format along the lines of Issue/ Principle/ Solution/ Transition was suggested as a possibility for the rewriting of the platform. A few planks were presented in this format at the 2002 convention, and immediately demonstrated the effectiveness of the format.
The 2002 Platform Committee continued as per convention mandate as a Special Committee to accomplish the task of reformatting the platform into the four point format, for presentation at the 2004 National Convention in Atlanta. The 2004 Platform Committee will continue the work of the Platform Special Committee and present the final product, if that is its decision, to the delegates at the convention for their approval.
To find out more and to provide your input into the process, please visit:
http://www.aznorthernalliance.org/LNCplatform/
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