By ANDREW W. GRIFFIN

Oklahoma Watchdog, editor

Posted: April 5, 2010

andrew@oklahomawatchdog.org

OKLAHOMA CITY — Meeting with members of the Libertarian Party of Oklahoma at a dinner a few weeks ago, Paul Jacob, the Virginia-based ballot initiative and referendum rights and legislative term limits activist, spoke about his experience in Oklahoma in 2007. This was where he was indicted on a charge of conspiracy to defraud the state for hiring out-of-state petitioners.

“I have not been back in Oklahoma since then,” Jacob said to the Libertarians gathered at a Chinese restaurant in Oklahoma City. “And what’s interesting is that interest outside the state more than it was here in Oklahoma.”

In fact, Kevin Calvey, the former state legislator now campaigning as a Republican for the 5th Congressional District, spoke to the group and said that while serving in Iraq, he met someone from Illinois who asked him where he was from. When Calvey replied “Oklahoma,” the Illinois-based State Department employee replied, “What is wrong with your crazy Attorney General?”

Calvey said he was aware of the case involving Jacob, Susan Johnson and Rick Carpenter, noting it was not reported much in state. It was media outlets outside Oklahoma that were really reporting on the case.

Jacob, who faced up to 10 years in prison and a $25,000 for attemtpting to placea pro-taxpayer initative on the state ballot, said the tyranny he faced while in the Sooner State was soon well-known and that “it was a political black eye for (Attorney General) Drew Edmondson.”

Edmondson, who was thoroughly criticized for prosecuting the Jacob and the Oklahoma 3, was supporting the law that barred out-of-state circulation petitioners. But the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, in late 2008, struck down the law, saying it violated the petitioner’s 1st Amendment rights. Edmondson appealed, but the court denied the state’s appeal. The suit was dismissed, ultimately, in early 2009.

Jacob said he recalled those days, trying to get the iniative on the ballot in Oklahoma, as difficult for him and his fellow activists.

“The police threatened petitioners here more than any other place I’ve worked,” Jacob said.”But when I think of Oklahoma, I think of folks like you. People who helped me when I was in trouble.”

“We didn’t break the law,” Jacob said. “The law was unconstitutional. It was a victory.”

Jacob told the Oklahoma Libertarians that “all the work we do, it matters.”

As it stands, only Republicans and Democrats are allowed to appear on the ballot. Naturally, the Libertarian Party seeks to be able to appear on ballots in Oklahoma, a difficult feat. Jacob still sees Oklahoma as a state where a lot of work needs to be done to make it easier for third parties to appear on the ballot.

“What about whether or not our kids have freedom when we’re gone,” he said. “That’s why we’re doing what we’re doing.”

 Jacob is now the president of the Citizens In Charge Foundation. Through this 501(c3) non-profit organization, Jacob and his group work to educate the public on the benefits of citizen intiatives, referendum and recall petitions. This is to “shift power back into the hands of ordinary citizens,” notes a page on Wikipedia about the group.

“I think it’s the best vehicle we’ve had to keep government accountable,” Jacob said of his organization’s efforts.

The Libertarians in attendance said they were pleased with Jacob’s appearance and willingness to meet them for dinner in light of his recent bad experiences in Oklahoma in the past few years.

“We were glad to have him,” said Clark Duffe, who is running as an independent for the 5th Congressional District.

Copyright 2010 Oklahoma Watchdog