Newsletter: December 1999 - NLPÕS Campaign 2000 Takes OffÑMedia Coverage, Public Enthusiasm Intensify

December 1999

NLP’S Campaign 2000 Takes Off—Media Coverage, Public Enthusiasm Intensify

The Natural Law Party’s Campaign 2000 has already achieved great successes, and we want to share some of these achievements with you. Americans have never been more ready to hear our message—and to elect our candidates. With your support, we can make 2000 the Year of Natural Law in America.

On September 5, Dr. John Hagelin spoke to the nation on C-SPAN’s highly respected political news show Washington Journal. In a 40-minute live interview with call-ins from viewers, he brilliantly answered questions about virtually every area of the Natural Law Party’s solutions-based platform. The show generated a huge response; the Natural Law Party’s national office was flooded with emails, letters, and phone calls, all requesting more information or offering to help the Party.

Earlier in September, Dr. Hagelin appeared on WTTW’s Midwest TV show Chicago Tonight as one of four featured panelists discussing the potential hazards of genetically engineered foods. The show began with a report on the pros and cons of genetic engineering, followed by a spirited debate in which the need for increased safety testing emerged as a critical issue.

On October 1–3, at the prestigious State of the World Forum founded by Mikhail Gorbachev and held this year in San Francisco, Dr. Hagelin presented his talk “The Cosmos Within: The Scientific Discovery of Higher States of Consciousness and Their Profound Social Significance.” Over 1000 international scientific and political leaders attended the forum, including Canadian Prime Minister Kim Campbell, U.S. Senator Alan Cranston, and leading superstring theorist Dr. Brian Green. The presentation was so well received that Dr. Hagelin will likely speak again at next year’s Forum, to be held at the United Nations and attended by 185 heads of state.

Dr. Hagelin has been named to the national Advisory Board at the new Center for Natural Medicine and Prevention in Fairfield, Iowa. The Center, recently funded by an $8 million grant from the National Institutes of Health, is one of only nine “national centers of excellence” supported by the NIH and will focus on prevention-oriented health care for the African-American community. The Center’s work echoes the theme of Parity in Health Care endorsed by U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher, M.D., and members of the Congressional Prevention Coalition, who heard presentations last July from Dr. Hagelin and Center Director Robert Schneider, M.D.

The Natural Law Party’s website was chosen as the political party “Site of the Month” in September by Campaigns & Elections, the highly respected monthly political magazine published by the Congressional Quarterly. The accompanying review states that the Party “stands out with a site worthy of any major party or campaign. . . . The Natural Law Party has done a good job of giving voting surfers a good impression.” (We continue to improve and update our site, and we invite everyone to visit www.natural-law.org and take advantage of all the information contained there.)

Ten national Summits on the hazards of genetically engineered foods have already been organized by Mothers for Natural Law of the Natural Law Party and will be held in major cities around the country. The September 30 Summit in Los Angeles featured an impressive panel of eminent scientists, doctors, farmers, clergy, and food industry members and was co-hosted by many well-known Hollywood celebrities.

The Natural Law Party’s ballot access drives are far ahead of 1992 and 1996. We are already on the ballot in 15 states—Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Idaho, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, South Carolina, Utah, and West Virginia—and we have completed petition drives in Alaska, Maryland, Missouri, and Ohio. Signature gathering continues in Hawaii, Iowa, Kansas, Oregon, and Wyoming, and petition drives will soon begin in Kentucky and North Carolina. At present, no third parties except the Natural Law Party and the Libertarian Party have even begun signature drives. We are on target to be on the ballot in all 50 states in 2000.

At our national headquarters, in the last few months alone, we have responded to several thousand emails and phone calls and have sent out thousands of information packets. In response to this increasing activity, we have purchased new computers and software and have completely redesigned our campaign database, our office computer network, and our website in order to handle requests, capture information, and recruit candidates as efficiently as possible. Also, on October 24, our national headquarters relocated to a beautiful new building that has four times as much office space as our former location. From this new site, we will be able to continue this rapid expansion of our national activities throughout the coming year.

Our public relations firm has structured a national public awareness drive that will guarantee every Natural Law Party candidate at least one television spot, one radio show, and one press article, and we’re preparing powerful 30-second and 60-second television ads featuring John Hagelin speaking about America’s critical issues to be broadcast on all major TV networks.

These successes are your successes, and your generous, ongoing support has helped create a major turning point in our nation’s history. Americans are ready now—more than ever before—to vote new ideas and new leaders into office. With your help, we can transform America in this election season.