National Chairman's Letter

July 1999

Dear Members and Friends of the Independent American Party,

We are sixteen months away from the year 2000 presidential elections! U.S. Senator Bob Smith (R-NH), a presidential candidate, has indicated he may switch to a third party by August. Some Pat Buchanan staffers are trying to persuade him to change to a third party. And there may be other high-profile candidates considering a third party move. Several lesser-known presidential candidates have expressed interest in the IAP nomination.

As IAP national chairman, I attended the last two national committee meetings of the US Taxpayers Party (USTP). So far this summer I have attended a number of state conventions of USTP affiliates across the nation. Last week I attended the Prohibition Party national convention in Pennsylvania. I see much good in these state and national organizations and I have been well-received at each of their events.

In September, I will be attending the US Taxpayers Party national convention in St. Louis. Speculation is high that Senator Bob Smith may join their party by then and seek their presidential nomination along with several other candidates. The IAP is very interested in this event and its outcome. We may possibly want to co-nominate their candidate or work in coalition with them.

The IAP will hold its second National Conference in Salt Lake City on July 17. This will include a National Committee business meeting, Liberty Forum, and evening barbecue with speakers and entertainment. Everyone is invited to attend. But for those living far away, we plan to publish a summary of the business meeting and transcripts of the speeches on our website. For details of the National Conference, see the Events page of the WWW.USIAP.ORG website.

At our National Committee business meeting we plan to discuss strategies for coalition efforts with other like-minded third parties and possible co-nomination of a presidential candidate. We will discuss participation in presidential primaries, where possible, and methods of screening candidates to insure that our nominee meets the high ideals and principles of the Independent American Party.

Our WWW.USIAP.ORG web site remains popular with one or two new Viewpoint articles being added each week. We expect its popularity to increase as we approach our national nominating convention, tentatively planned for July 2000. We invite you to submit letters or articles for the web site. We have received many new members as a result of these articles.

Yours for Freedom!

Bruce Bangerter
IAP National Chairman