Jason Sorens lowers the bar: Free State Project Statement of Intent 'isn't a promise'
At the end of 2012, the leaders of the Free State Project announced an aggressive program to hit their target of 20,000 members by the end of 2014. “This means we need to recruit 6,000+ signers over the next two years, which averages to about 60 per week,” they wrote. “Aggressive? Yes. Impossible? No.”
Impossible? No. Unlikely? Yes. 16 months after the push to Trigger the Move (and more than 12 years after the group first began collecting signatures) the Free State Project is still over 4300 signers short of their goal.
Perhaps this explains why founder Jason Sorens has “clarified” the group’s Statement of Intent – which begins “I hereby state my solemn intent to move to the state of New Hampshire.” The Statement of Intent isn’t a promise, he wrote:
I propose this guideline: If you think the chance is greater than 50% that you will be able to move to New Hampshire within seven years, and you agree with our philosophy, you should sign the Statement of Intent. … Finally, it’s worth noting that moving doesn’t necessarily require full-time residency. The Attorney General doesn’t require it for voting or even running for political office. The more time you spend here helping us reach our neighbors, the better – but not everyone can be here full-time, and that’s understandable.