The Our America Initiative was a

501(c)(4) A 501(c) organization is a nonprofit organization in the federal law of the United States according to Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. § 501(c)) and is one of over 29 types of nonprofit organizations exempt from some federal income taxes. ...

political advocacy committee formed by Gary Johnson, the former

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

politician who served as the 29th Governor of

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ke ...

from 1995 to 2003. The 501(c)(4) committee was created in December 2009, when Johnson hired strategist Ron Nielson of NSON Opinion Strategy to help organize a 501(c)(4) committee. The two have worked together since 1993, when Nielson ran Johnson's successful gubernatorial campaign. Johnson served as the Honorary Chairman for the Our America Initiative. The focus of the organization is to speak out on issues regarding topics such as government efficiency, lowering taxes, winning the war on drug abuse, protecting civil liberties, revitalizing the economy and promoting entrepreneurship and privatization. The mission statement of the Our America Initiative: "OUR America Initiative seeks to broaden the parameters of the public policy debate of current topics in the national arena. We look to enlighten the population about civil liberties, free enterprise, limited government, and traditional American values. It is our aim to increase the amount of discussion and involvement regarding all-important issues."

Suit Against Presidential Debate Commission

In 2016, Our America Initiative funded a lawsuit filed by the Libertarian Party and the Green Party (as well as Gary Johnson and Jill Stein, the eventual presidential nominees for the respective parties) against the Commission on Presidential Debates; the lawsuit advanced the position that "the exclusion of qualified candidates from the general election presidential debates by the commission violates federal antitrust laws." Judge

Rosemary M. Collyer Rosemary Mayers Collyer (born November 19, 1945) is an inactive Senior United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, and a Judge of the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. ...

of the U.S. District Court for Washington, D.C. rejected the legal challenge, ruling that "Johnson and Stein have no standing to make antitrust and First Amendment challenges to the CPD’s rules (which require a third-party candidate to average 15 percent support in five national polls in the run-up to debates), because the 'Defendants here are private parties.'"

Liberty Tour 2016

During the 2016 election, Our America Initiative sponsored a national tour, "visiting college campuses and other venues across America to raise awareness about third party inclusion in national presidential debates." The tour made stops in 40 states; speakers included Governors Gary Johnson and

Bill Weld William Floyd Weld (born July 31, 1945) is an American attorney, businessman, author, and politician who served as the 68th Governor of Massachusetts from 1991 to 1997. A Harvard and Oxford graduate, Weld began his career as legal counsel to ...

, Unleash Your Inner Company author John Chisholm, Law Enforcement Against Prohibition executive director and former Baltimore Police Chief Neill Franklin, Free the People's

Matt Kibbe Matthew B. Kibbe () is the President and Chief Community Organizer of Free the People, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting libertarian ideals. Prior to founding Free the People, he was the President of FreedomWorks He also worked as ...

, Republicans

Ed Lopez Eduardo Jesus Lopez-Reyes best known as Ed Lopez (born June 26, 1976) is an American politician and activist for the Republican Party. He previously served as the vice chairman of the Republican Liberty Caucus. In 2022, Lopez unsuccessfully ran f ...

and Liz Mair, Conscious Capitalism’s Alex McCobin,

Reason Foundation The Reason Foundation is an American libertarian think tank that was founded in 1978. The foundation publishes the magazine ''Reason''. Based in Los Angeles, California, it is a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization. According to its web site, the f ...

’s David Nott, Foundation for Economic Education’s Jeffrey Tucker, the Libertarian Party's Carla Howell, former Delaware attorney general and over-criminalization activist Ken Abraham, and author and journalist

Naomi Wolf Naomi Rebekah Wolf (born November 12, 1962) is an American feminist author, journalist and conspiracy theorist. Following her first book ''The Beauty Myth'' (1991), she became a leading spokeswoman of what has been described as the third wave ...

as well as comedians Jeremy McClellan,

Viceland Viceland (stylized in all caps), and Vice TV in the United States, are brands used for television channels owned and programmed by Vice Media. Viceland launched on February 29, 2016, with two branded cable channels; the American version (rebra ...

’s Travis Irvine, and We the Internet’s Lou Perez.

References

External links

OurAmericaInitiative.com
{{Portal bar, Libertarianism, Politics, United States 501(c)(4) nonprofit organizations Gary Johnson Conservative organizations in the United States