Paul Jacob

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Paul Jacob
Paul jacob.jpg
Basic facts
Organization:Citizens in Charge Foundation
Role:President
Location:Woodbridge, Virginia
Expertise:Political activist
Affiliation:Libertarian
Education:•Westminster College
•University of Arkansas at Little Rock[1]
Website:Official website


Paul Jacob is a libertarian ballot measure activist and first gained prominence in the 1980s for his opposition to the Selective Service.[2] He is the president of the Citizens in Charge Foundation and its 501(c)(4) affiliate, Citizens in Charge, which seeks to protect and expand the initiative and referendum process.[3] Jacob serves on the board of both Citizens in Charge Foundation and Citizens in Charge.[4][5]

Career

Draft resistance

In 1982, Paul Jacob, a draft resistance activist, was featured in an article in Rolling Stone that focused on his refusal sign up with the Selective Service. At the time, the Selective Service and the FBI were after him for his failure to join the service. He began traveling around the country talking to students and other youths about not registering. Jacob to Rolling Stone, "[i]t's important to show seventeen-year-olds and eighteen-year-olds who are about to register that you can resist being a slave to the military. If the choice is between jail and the draft, then eighteen-year-olds have nowhere to go, but...there's a much better alternative. That is simply to move away from home and not leave a forwarding address. I've been away from home for a year now, and I've been a public resister and I'm still free. So, obviously, anyone who's been a quiet nonregistrant has nothing to fear."[2]

At the time, Jacob was associated with the National Resistance Committee, which sought to actively urge men not to sign up for the draft. In 1984, Jacob was arrested by the FBI for his refusal to register with the Selective Service. He spent six months in prison as a result.[6][7]

Libertarian Party

See also: Libertarian Party and Libertarian Party of Arkansas

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Jacob served in several positions with the Libertarian Party. Jacob was the national director of the national party and its national ballot access coordinator. While still in prison, he was elected to the Libertarian National Committee. He was also elected as the chairman of the Libertarian Party of Arkansas.[7]

U.S. Term Limits

See also: U.S. Term Limits and U.S. Term Limits, Inc. v. Thornton

Jacob served as president and on the board of U.S. Term Limits, a national term limits advocacy group that lobbies for term limits for elected officials at each level of government in the United States.[1][8] He worked for the group from its inception in 1992 until 2007.[1] In 1992, under Jacob's leadership, the group placed term limits on ballots in 14 states, which was followed in 1994 with measures in eight more states. In 1995, a case challenging the legality of a state placing restrictions on Congressional terms was brought before the U.S. Supreme Court as U.S. Term Limits, Inc. v. Thornton.[9] The Supreme Court concluded, by a 5-4 vote, that it was not legal for a state to impose term limits on elected federal positions.[10] The result of the court's decision de facto struck down all 23 laws that U.S. Term Limits had helped to pass throughout the country. In 1996, U.S. Term Limits put forth new term limit measures in 14 states.[1] [11]

Citizens in Charge Foundation and the Sam Adams Alliance

See also: Citizens in Charge Foundation and Sam Adams Alliance

In 2003, Jacob became the president of Citizens in Charge Foundation as well as Citizens in Charge, the 501(c)(4) arm of the foundation.[5][4] Both groups aim to protect and expand the initiative and referendum process.[3] Jacob also serves on the board of both organizations.[5][4]

Between 2006 until 2009, Jacob served as a senior advisor for the defunct Sam Adams Alliance.[1] Eric O'Keefe, the former chairman and CEO of the group, also serves on the boards of the Citizens in Charge Foundation and Citizens in Charge.[12][13]

Liberty Initiative Fund

See also: Liberty Initiative Fund

In 2012, in addition to his roles with Citizens in Charge, Jacob began as president of the Liberty Initiative Fund, an organization that aims to promote government accountability, opposing government favoritism, and adherence to the Constitution through ballot initiatives.[14]

Publications

Jacob is author and host of Common Sense, an online, radio, and print opinion program. The program is a daily commentary on politics. It is sponsored by the nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization Think Freely Media.[15]

Jacob authors a weekly column for Townhall.com, a conservative and political opinion website.[16][17] Jacob has also written articles for USA Today, The New York Daily News, Roll Call, The Washington Times, The Washington Examiner, and the Chicago Tribune.[4]

Noteworthy events

Yes on Term Limits v. Savage

See also: Free Paul Jacob and Yes on Term Limits v. Savage

In 2007, Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson filed criminal charges against Jacob, Susan Johnson and Rick Carpenter, who became collectively known as the Oklahoma 3. Edmondson asserted that Jacob, Johnson and Carpenter had violated Oklahoma's ban on non-resident petition circulators. The three denied the charges.[18]

As the result of a federal lawsuit, Yes on Term Limits v. Savage, the Tenth Circuit ruled unanimously on December 18, 2008, that the law under which Edmondson was criminally prosecuting the trio was unconstitutional. Edmondson asked the court to re-consider; on January 21, the court said it would not do so. Edmondson then on January 22 dropped his prosecution, saying that the 1969 law under which he was prosecuting them was no longer enforceable.[19]

Media

Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Paul Jacob. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

Paul Jacob - Google News

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Rolling Stone, "Nothing About the Draft Makes Sense," September 30, 1982
  2. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Citizens in Charge, "About," accessed May 18, 2016
  3. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Citizens in Charge Foundation, "Paul Jacob," accessed May 18, 2016
  4. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Citizens in Charge Foundation, "Paul Jacob," accessed May 18, 2016
  5. ↑ Common Sense, "Why I refuse to register," accessed May 18, 2016
  6. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Common Sense, "About Paul Jacob," accessed May 18, 2016
  7. ↑ U.S. Term Limits, "Our Board of Directors," accessed May 18, 2016
  8. ↑ Oyez, "U.S. Term Limits, Inc. v. Thornton," accessed May 18, 2016
  9. ↑ Justia.com, "U.S. Term Limits, Inc. v. Thornton - 514 U.S. 779 (1994)," accessed December 27, 2013
  10. ↑ U.S. Term Limits, "Our Board of Directors," accessed May 18, 2016
  11. ↑ Citizens in Charge Foundation, "Eric O'Keefe," accessed May 18, 2016
  12. ↑ Citizens in Charge, "Eric O'Keefe," accessed May 18, 2016
  13. ↑ Liberty Initiative Fund, "About," accessed May 18, 2016
  14. ↑ Common Sense, "About Common Sense," accessed May 31, 2016
  15. ↑ Townhall.com, "Paul Jacob," accessed May 31, 2016
  16. ↑ Townhall.com, "About Us," accessed May 31, 2016
  17. ↑ The Wall Street Journal, "Still Oklahoma's Most Wanted," December 26, 2008
  18. ↑ Associated Press, "State won't appeal initiative petition ruling," January 22, 2009
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