Liberty for All Super PAC buying $375K in ads for Jeff Flake

[AJ Antimony]

http://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/news/2012/07/27/super-pac-buying-375k-in-ads-for.html

More arrows are being launched in the advertising war between U.S. Rep. Jeff Flake and businessman Wil Cardon in their expensive Republican U.S. Senate primary.

A libertarian Super PAC has announced it is making a $375,000 ad buy in Arizona in support of Flake, a Mesa congressman.

The Liberty for All Super PAC announced the ad buy Thursday. The group is funded mostly from money from a 21-year-old millionaire out of Texas named John Ramsey who backed Ron Paul’s presidential bid.

Now if they could also help David Schweikert defeat Ben Quayle...

 

[tsai3904]

I wouldn't be surprised if this was an earmarked donation from one donor.

 

[trey4sports]

I wouldn't be surprised if this was an earmarked donation from one donor.

I really hope so because Art Robinson or John Brunner or a ton of other GOOD candidates could use this money!

 

[FSP-Rebel]

Interesting.. Can't wait to see some of their other upcoming expenditures.

 

[tsai3904]

These are the amounts they have spent on other races:

Thomas Massie: $642,886.24

Kerry Bentivolio: $107,907.30

 

[AJ Antimony]

I really hope so because Art Robinson or John Brunner or a ton of other GOOD candidates could use this money!

Is this group even raising a lot of money? I thought all the money came from the 21-year-old. Maybe they're focusing on the most important elections first. I mean, if Flake can win his primary, then he should be a safe, libertarian-leaning senator until he decides to retire.

Robinson on the other hand is running in a Democratic district (maybe it can be called a swing district in 2012). Will he need half a million dollars from this super PAC every two years? Brunner is funding his own campaign and already has a $3 million fundraising advantage over his primary opponents. He definitely needs the money for the general election, but it doesn't look like he needs it for the primary.

 

[tsai3904]

Is this group even raising a lot of money? I thought all the money came from the 21-year-old.

They said they were going to hire professional fundraisers and had plans to raise a lot of money this summer but no one knows if that has happened or not.

As of their latest FEC report ending on June 30, it was mostly funded by John Ramsey. He contributed over $1.9 million, which is 99% of their contributions.

 

[LibertyEagle]

When they last posted here, they were asking for donations.

 

[Lucille]

Flake voted against the Smith-Amash amendment, and for the NDAA.

 

[tbone717]

Is this group even raising a lot of money? I thought all the money came from the 21-year-old. Maybe they're focusing on the most important elections first. I mean, if Flake can win his primary, then he should be a safe, libertarian-leaning senator until he decides to retire.

Robinson on the other hand is running in a Democratic district (maybe it can be called a swing district in 2012). Will he need half a million dollars from this super PAC every two years? Brunner is funding his own campaign and already has a $3 million fundraising advantage over his primary opponents. He definitely needs the money for the general election, but it doesn't look like he needs it for the primary.

I think you nailed it here. If Flake wins, then he is pretty much safe and won't need to raise a ton of cash every six years. The Senate gets a guy that is going to vote with Rand about 90% of the time or more based on his history in the House. The alternative in Cardon is an establishment type, that would essentially have a job in the Senate till he retires. The return on investment is big here.

What some folks here are going to have to come to grips with is that not every Liberty group or PAC feels that a candidate must be a card carrying member of the Mises Institute and have antiwar.com in their bookmarks in order to be someone that warrants support. If someone doesn't like a guy like Flake because of some of the positions he holds, or votes he has made in the past - then fine don't send him any cash. But don't get your panties in a bunch when there are other Liberty minded groups that do back him.

 

[FSP-Rebel]

Kerry Bentivolio: $107,907.30

Thought they only dropped ~$50k on Kerry, what did the other $50k go towards? just curious

Regarding Brunner, he had only $180k on hand as of 6-30-12 with his main GOP rivals having $1.4 mill and $560k respectively. Granted, he did spend ~$4.8 mill on his own, hopefully it was all put to good use to make him the presumptive nominee and the others can't run a coup on him in the last month or so.

 

[trey4sports]

Thought they only dropped ~$50k on Kerry, what did the other $50k go towards? just curious

Regarding Brunner, he had only $180k on hand as of 6-30-12 with his main GOP rivals having $1.4 mill and $560k respectively. Granted, he did spend ~$4.8 mill on his own, hopefully it was all put to good use to make him the presumptive nominee and the others can't run a coup on him in the last month or so.

we're only 10 days or so away from the primary. Seems to be a good mix of ads for all 3 candidates. Polls are pretty tight as well. I haven't seen a non-internal poll now for months, however, John pulled out of a couple speaking engagements so i'm guessing he is playing it safe at this point.

 

[tsai3904]

I think you nailed it here. If Flake wins, then he is pretty much safe and won't need to raise a ton of cash every six years. The Senate gets a guy that is going to vote with Rand about 90% of the time or more based on his history in the House. The alternative in Cardon is an establishment type, that would essentially have a job in the Senate till he retires. The return on investment is big here.

What some folks here are going to have to come to grips with is that not every Liberty group or PAC feels that a candidate must be a card carrying member of the Mises Institute and have antiwar.com in their bookmarks in order to be someone that warrants support. If someone doesn't like a guy like Flake because of some of the positions he holds, or votes he has made in the past - then fine don't send him any cash. But don't get your panties in a bunch when there are other Liberty minded groups that do back him.

To me, the bigger problem isn't Flake. It's the fact that Flake is leading in the primaries by over 20% AND he has millions of cash on hand. He also has Club for Growth spending huge amounts money for him.

I just don't see the need or the urgency to help out Flake when it's very likely he will win on his own.

 

[tsai3904]

Thought they only dropped ~$50k on Kerry, what did the other $50k go towards? just curious

They spent another $50k in the last couple days.

$20k in mailers attacking Nancy and $32k in voter telephone contact for Kerry

http://query.nictusa.com/cgi-bin/dcdev/forms/C00514653/801545/se
http://query.nictusa.com/cgi-bin/dcdev/forms/C00514653/801813/se

 

[emazur]

One thing that sucks about Flake is that he flaked out and endorsed Romney for president instead of Paul back in 9/2011 http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2011/09/19/jeff_flake_endorses_mitt_romney_111386.html and I believe also in 2008 he endorsed Romney

 

[Sola_Fide]

These are the amounts they have spent on other races:

Thomas Massie: $642,886.24

Kerry Bentivolio: $107,907.30

Good to see that they are supporting Bentivolio.

 

[Sola_Fide]

One thing that sucks about Flake is that he flaked out and endorsed Romney for president instead of Paul back in 9/2011 http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2011/09/19/jeff_flake_endorses_mitt_romney_111386.html and I believe also in 2008 he endorsed Romney

Jeff Flake is a Mormon right?

 

[mport1]

Wow, Flake is not a liberty candidate. Why would they waste their money on him?

 

[sailingaway]

One thing that sucks about Flake is that he flaked out and endorsed Romney for president instead of Paul back in 9/2011 http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2011/09/19/jeff_flake_endorses_mitt_romney_111386.html and I believe also in 2008 he endorsed Romney

Flake voted to extend the Patriot Act and for NDAA/Against the Smith/Amash amendment to get rid of indefinite detention of American citizens without trial, as I understand it. There is another thread with a discussion on this in grassroots central, but it isn't just about Flake.

I wonder what the PAC's criteria are. NDAA and the Patriot Act aren't things I'd want to support, myself.

 

[talkingpointes]

Flake is shit and so is Schwiekert- are you kidding me. Bentovolio and Robinson please. Flake was totally sucking off Romney after the caucus here.