The Bush Administration, with remarkable singlemindedness, has set about undoing more than thirty ye

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• The Bush Administration, with remarkable
  single-mindedness, has set about undoing more
  than thirty years of work to protect the nations
  air, water and shrinking wilderness.
• Elizabeth Kolbert
• New Yorker, November 14, 2002

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The best way to protect Americas
environment?Stop George Bushs
destructive policies.
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The Bush Administration plans to

• Permit electric power plants to put three times
  more mercury in our air and water
• Shift the cost of cleaning-up toxic dump sites
  from polluters to taxpayers
• Cut funds needed to enforce the laws that protect
  our families and communities
• Increase oil and gas drilling on publicly-owned
  lands

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The Sierra Club Uniquely Positioned to Stop
the Bush Administrations Damaging Policies
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Americas largest, oldest, most influential
grassroots environmental organization.
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111 years old 750,000 members4,000,000
supporters
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20,000 active volunteers donating millions of
dollars in services
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At the Sierra Club We Lobby, Educate and
Energize
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Lobbying Lawmakers
We want to attain the same measure of influence
over drug policy that the Sierra Club,the NAACP,
the NRAhave attained in their respective
areas. - The Drug Policy Alliance,
February 4, 2002
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We influence legislationand policy makers
through

• Conducting and sharing public opinion research
• Capital Hill briefings from Sierra Club experts
• In-district visits and grassroots action

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• A survey of every member of Congress ranked
  the Sierra Club as the non-profit with most
  influence over federal environmental policy.
• Study conducted by the Aspen Institute, 1998

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What others are saying about the Sierra Club

• The most influential environmental organization
  in matters of federal policy.
• The Aspen Institute, 2000

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• The NRA is a toothless tiger compared to the
  Sierra Club.
• Dick Wadhams,
• spokesman for Senator Wayne Allard (R-CO)

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The 2004 Political Landscape
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• We will have more money than God.
• GOP operative
• Bush plans to raise 200 million.
• That would be a record amount by a presidential
  candidate
• New York Times, April 22, 2003

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Their strategy

• Raise record funds
• Direct voter contact The 72 hour plan
• Use presidential popularity
• Pretend to be environmentalists

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How do we meet the challenge?
Seize the Opportunity to Mobilize Environmental
Voters
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Our strength

• the environment is the single issue on which
  Republicans in general and President Bush in
  particular are most vulnerable.
• Frank Luntz, Republican strategist,
• Straight Talk

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• The Republican's remedy is not to change the
  policy, but to dress it up in warm and fuzzy
  words."
• New York Times, March 1, 2003

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In 2002, voters were overwhelmed by political
advertising

• Ads aired during election season
• Minn/St. Paul 24,764
• South Dakota 50,000
• Denver, CO 23,906

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But unions focused on a better way to reach their
membersPersonal and Frequent Contact made a
difference

• Personal In person or phone contact
• 15 improvement in persuasion
• Frequent 4 or more contacts 15 increase in
  turnout

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In 2002, the Republicans reached the same
conclusionits not about more TV its all
about one-to-one communications
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2004 Presidential Base States
161 Electoral Votes 168 Electoral Votes
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2004 Leaning States
29 Electoral Votes 15 Electoral Votes
Cumulative Total 190 R and 183 D
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2004 Battleground States
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Battleground Vote Analysis
2000 margin 6,765 Sierra Club
19,433 Env. Voters 118,347
2000 margin 5,708 Sierra Club 11,422 Env.
Voters 88,491
2000 margin 217,279 Sierra Club 17,790 Env
Voters 136,903
2000 margin 4,144 Sierra Club 4,898 Env Voters
65,418
2000 margin 21,597 Sierra Club 3,733 Env
Voters 23,259
Partnership Data LCV Data
2000 margin 166,735 Sierra Club 16,594 Env
Voters 130,251
2000 margin 567 Sierra Club 25,137 Env
Voter 211,191
2000 margin 366 Sierra Club 5,751 Env
Voters 35,136
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Battleground Vote Analysis
2000 margin 58,607 Sierra Club 18,736 Env.
Voters 286,995
2000 margin 7,211 Sierra Club 5,319 Env
Voters 30,653
2000 margin 78,786 Sierra Club 9,046 Env
Voters 64,580
Partnership Data LCV Data
2000 margin 204,840 Sierra Club 23,300 Env
Voters 206,614
2000 margin 96,311 Sierra Club 9,994 Env
Voters 65,531
2000 margin 40,978 Sierra Club 1,574 Env
Voters 14,656
2000 margin 50,172 Sierra Club 2,090 Env
Voters 16,704
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Use our power and size to mobilize our members

• Vote margin in 2000 battleground states
  75,000
• Sierra Club members in battleground states
  174,817

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Mobilize our Membersto Beat Bush

• Increased e-activism
• Fundraising for candidates
• Mobilizing our 750,000 members to work Beat Bush
• Ensuring our 750,000 members vote on Nov. 2

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2004 A Year of Environmental Opportunity and
ChallengeReaching the Environmental Majority
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The Bush Administration will have more capacity
than ever to persuade the public of their
environmental credentials.
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Our Response

• Environmental Voter Education Campaign
• EVEC2004

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Goals

• Educate voters about the candidates records and
  positions
• Stop Bushs assaults by holding the Bush
  Administration and Congress accountable for their
  votes and positions
• Unmask environmental pretenders through rapid
  response, voter education, and holding them
  accountable in the media and at election time.
• Identify, contact and turnout environmental
  voters and supporters in 600,000 households

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• Sierra Club pioneered the use of 527 issue
  advocacy campaigns in 1996
• Since 1996, we have used issue advocacy campaigns
  to educate voters about candidates records and
  positions.
• Now, we are using our issue advocacy campaign to
  identify and give voice to voters who care about
  the environment.

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Environmental Vote Second only to Unions

• 10,478,106
• environmental voters in target states

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But how do we reach environmental voters when
Bush will be spending 200 million?
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Job 1 Identify and Educate environmental
voters
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In 2004 we will use face-to-face communications
to

• Reach 2,000,000 environmental voters in
  battleground states
• Move up to 600,000 voters with intense and
  repeated environmental message
• 100 lead volunteers will be responsible for 10
  volunteers each
• 1000 volunteers to be responsible for 40 voters
  each 40,000 repeat personal contacts
• In 10 - 15 precinct clusters up to 600, 000
  personal contacts nationwide

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The Sierra Club has learned

• The secret to organizing is talking to one
  person, then another person, and then another.
• Cesar Chavez
• Founder, United Farmworkers

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Sierra Club Political CommitteeA Record of
Effectiveness
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SCPC - 2002

• 35 staff sent to political campaigns of endorsed
  candidates
• 196 House and Senate candidates receiving
  contributions 77 won
• 216 House and Senate candidates endorsed 74
  won
• 800,000 spent to elect pro-environment candidates

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SCPC - 2002

• 75,000 endorsement mailings to members
• 85,000 GOTV e-mails sent to members
• 110,000 GOTV phone calls made
• 750,000 mailings in our membership renewals
• 750,000 GOTV inserts in Sierra Magazine to
  members
• TOTAL PAC MEMBER VOTER CONTACTS 1,770,000

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Endorsements for our Endorsements

• In Maryland, an endorsement from the Sierra Club
  is worth three times that of a nod from the
  Chamber of Commerce.
• Washington Post Op-ed, 9/08/02

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• In my race, the Sierra Club endorsement was a
  turning point.  It directed the attention of the
  entire local environmental community toward my
  record and galvanized a crucial element in my
  winning, progressive coalition. The Sierra Club
  endorsement makes a huge difference for
  progressive, pro-environment candidates facing
  well-financed opponents. Greenwashing is
  impossible when the Sierra Club makes a strong
  endorsement.
• Raúl M. Grijalva, (D-AZ07)

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• I was elected as a challenger in large part due
  to my support of the environment, and letting
  voters know about the dismal record of my
  opponent.  And when I received the Sierra Club's
  endorsement, that gave me the independent
  credibility I needed to campaign as the
  environmental champion.
• Congressman Tim Bishop, (D-NY1)

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A Great Return on Investment

• "The group with the greatest return on
  investment was probably the pro-environment
  Sierra Club
• The Economist, November 7, 1998
• on the 1998 elections