WJPBR Email News List [EMAIL PROTECTED] Peace at any cost is a prelude to war! October 2, 1999 Leave Party, Reform Chairman Tells Ventura Ventura -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Related Article Ventura Says Religion Is For 'Weak' (Oct. 1, 1999) 1999) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- By MIKE ALLEN he Reform Party's lame-duck chairman demanded on Friday that Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura resign from the party because of his assertion in Playboy magazine that "organized religion is a sham and a crutch." The governor's official response, as spelled by his spokesman, was a smiling, "Pffff!" In the November issue of Playboy, Ventura declared that organized religion "tells people to go out and stick their noses in other people's business." The party chairman, Russell Verney, faxed a letter to Ventura, the party's only major electoral success story, saying his comments "about religion, sexual assault, overweight people, drugs, prostitution, women's undergarments and many other subjects do not represent the values, principles or ethics upon which this party was built." "You have brought shame to yourself and disgrace to the members of the Reform Party," Verney wrote. "For the good of the members, you should resign now from the Reform Party of the United States of America." Verney said in a telephone interview that he would meet with party leaders early next week to decide whether to try to force Ventura to stop using the Reform Party as his party identification. Verney said members had lodged thousands of fax, e-mail and telephone complaints about the Playboy comments. Nevertheless, Verney's move is sure to antagonize the many party members who regard Ventura as the party's best hope for becoming a permanent force in national politics. Verney is a longtime aide to Ross Perot, who is believed by many party leaders to be encouraging Pat Buchanan to switch from the Republican Party to the Reform Party, forcing Ventura to share the spotlight. At the party's national convention in July, members elected a new chairman, John Gargan, who had been endorsed by Ventura. Gargan had hoped to assume the duties before the official transition on Jan. 1, but Verney has refused. The party's presidential nominee will qualify for $13 million in Federal funds, and many leaders say the party's constant infighting leaves it open to a coup by a well-organized outsider. Verney said that before sending his fax, he called Ventura's office and was told he could expect a response in "two to three months." Ventura, according to aides, read the fax, then smiled, shook his head and went home for the weekend. **COPYRIGHT NOTICE** In accordance with Title 17 U. S. C. Section 107, any copyrighted work in this message is distributed under fair use without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for nonprofit research and educational purposes only.[Ref. http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml ]
