PNC 08/09/2026

PNC Meeting Minutes: August 2nd, 2026

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Pirate National Committee — All national committees

The August 9th 2026 PNC Meeting was one of the weekly meetings of the Pirate National Committee (PNC).

Agenda

Reminders

• A deadline of August 9th was set for submitting a location for the 2027 conference with a subsequent September 6th deadline for the PNC to decide a location.

Discussion

New Business

Updated Foreign Policy Plank

• Platform has sent the following to the PNC for review and potential approval.

 We advocate for the right to free association and self-determination. People living in a political entity should have the right to maintain, alter or conclude their relationship to larger entities, or join in union, if it is the will of the people. The foreign policy of the United States has not reflected those values.

To hold ourselves accountable to the standards we expect of other countries, we believe the United States should

- Ratify the Rome Statute and repeal the Hague Invasion Act
- Accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
- Ratify the Arms Trade Treaty to reduce the proliferation of conventional weapons.
- Pay UN dues in full and on time.
  
The same standard applies to what we fund abroad. We should give no military aid to any undemocratic country including the genocidal apartheid state of Israel.

In our own hemisphere, decades of embargo and sanction have punished populations without changing the governments they were aimed at. The United States has not been a good neighbor.  We believe that through the OAS or other Pan-American organizations we should foster genuine collaboration and friendship. We should end the Cuban embargo, close Guantanamo Bay, lift sanctions on Nicaragua and end the occupation of Venezuela. Legislation should be passed explicitly preventing the US government and intelligence agencies from covertly interfering with elections anywhere. This is only a start to what needs to be done to repair relations in the Americas.

Where sanctions and tariffs remain a tool of policy, they should be bounded in time and should never be aimed at civilians. There should be permanent humanitarian exemptions in sanctions for food, medicine, and civilian fuel. Sunset clauses and mandatory congressional reauthorization should be attached to any sanctions or tariff regime.

Our force structure should be sized to the missions we actually intend to carry out. The US military is by far the most powerful in the world, it is an unjustifiable level of over-preparedness. With the goal of reducing US military spending to 50% of its current level over the next 15 years, we should reevaluate our defense spending priorities and focus on reductions in capacity while maintaining readiness. The Pentagon budget should be cut every year it fails an audit, and redundant overseas bases should be closed.

While nuclear weapons will certainly remain an essential part of US military capability for the foreseeable future, our nuclear strategy should be aimed at the eventual goal of a world without them. To that end:

- We should negotiate an expanded New START successor treaty to govern a mutual drawdown in nuclear weapons, within a framework that can include all nuclear powers.
- We should adopt a legally binding no-first-use policy for nuclear weapons.
- We should ratify the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty.
    

Congress must also reclaim its constitutional authority over the use of force. The 2001 AUMF should be repealed, and the War Powers Act should be amended to close loopholes and strengthen enforcement.

The War Powers Act should be updated to require congressional authorization before introducing US forces into any hostilities, except to repel an actual armed attack on the United States. Any such emergency use of force should terminate automatically, with appropriations cut off, absent congressional authorization within 30 days.  
  
Hostilities should be explicitly defined to include drone strikes, standoff strikes, special operations raids, offensive cyber operations, direct support to belligerents, and any other comparable use of force that successive presidents have used to avoid congressional oversight and conduct illegal wars. Individual members of Congress should be granted standing to sue for unauthorized uses of force, with expedited review and political-question dismissal barred. 

Discussion

Attending State Representatives

• Arizona - Blase Henry, Vice Chair
• Florida - Wanda Ward, Swarmcare Manager
• Illinois - Rowan Tipping, PR Director
• Indiana - Eric
• Massachusetts - James OKeefe
• Ohio - Mars Bale, Webmaster
• Pennsylvania, Drew Bingaman

Absent States

• Maryland

Non Voting

• Lily Boyt - AL, Scribe
• Ewa Kruzel - AZ, AZPP web director
• Hunter Rand - Nevada
• James Nguyen - North Carolina

Reports

Florida

• The Florida Pirate Party will be having its next regular meeting on Saturday August 15th over Discord.

Illinois

Illinois did not meet on August 9th as originally planned. They plan to be meeting next week as regularly scheduled.

Pennsylvania

• The deadline passed for Bingaman's campaign for being placed on the ballot as a third party or independent candidate. Not enough signatures were collected to attempt a filing. The campaign is effectively done due to the lack of ballot access.

Old Business

Discussion on Conference Location

• Based on member submissions to a form the following list of cities were up for consideration.

Peoria, Austin, New Orleans, Las Vegas, Huntsville, Pittsburgh , Memphis , Seattle, Sparks-Reno-Taho Area, Saint Louis , Mobile, Tuscon, Philadelphia, Portland, Baltimore.

• OKeefe mentioned that it is very important that a location has people on the ground to actually organize.

• Rand said that Nevada as a state is very well set up for special events.
• Mitch suggested that the 2027 conference is Mobile or Baltimore, that 2028 is Tuscon, and 2029 is the other of Mobile or Baltimore.

• Boyt mentioned that setting a conference date that far out could not work out since volunteers are volatile.

• Ward motioned for the 2027 conference to be held in Mobile Bale seconded.

• Rand mentioned that the Mobile airport could have issues with the logistics of people getting there.

• Ward mentioned that Amtrack has access to Mobile and offered to drive a few people from Pensacola.

State	Vote
Arizona	Nay
Florida	Aye
Illinois	Nay
Indiana	Nay
Massachusetts	Nay
Ohio	Aye
Pennsylvania	Nay

Motion failed 2-5.

New Business

Jacob Anders Un-Endorsement

Tipping brought up that Anders tweeted problematic language multiple times and was defending Graham Platner on Twitter. Additionally Tippnig stated that Anders was likely found guilty in a harassment case, as well as having ongoing accusations against him. Tipping belives he will likely tarnish the pirate reptuation and wishes to undo the endorsement. Additionally he believes there should be a vetting committee.

• Moved by Ward to rescind the endorsement of Jacob Anders seconded by Bingaman

State	Vote
Arizona	Aye
Florida	Aye
Illinois	Aye
Indiana	Aye
Massachusetts	Aye
Ohio	Aye
Pennsylvania	Aye

Motion passed 7-0.

Updated Foreign Policy Plank

• Platform has sent the following to the PNC for review and potential approval.

 We advocate for the right to free association and self-determination. People living in a political entity should have the right to maintain, alter or conclude their relationship to larger entities, or join in union, if it is the will of the people. The foreign policy of the United States has not reflected those values.

To hold ourselves accountable to the standards we expect of other countries, we believe the United States should

- Ratify the Rome Statute and repeal the Hague Invasion Act
- Accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
- Ratify the Arms Trade Treaty to reduce the proliferation of conventional weapons.
- Pay UN dues in full and on time.
  
The same standard applies to what we fund abroad. We should give no military aid to any undemocratic country including the genocidal apartheid state of Israel.

In our own hemisphere, decades of embargo and sanction have punished populations without changing the governments they were aimed at. The United States has not been a good neighbor.  We believe that through the OAS or other Pan-American organizations we should foster genuine collaboration and friendship. We should end the Cuban embargo, close Guantanamo Bay, lift sanctions on Nicaragua and end the occupation of Venezuela. Legislation should be passed explicitly preventing the US government and intelligence agencies from covertly interfering with elections anywhere. This is only a start to what needs to be done to repair relations in the Americas.

Where sanctions and tariffs remain a tool of policy, they should be bounded in time and should never be aimed at civilians. There should be permanent humanitarian exemptions in sanctions for food, medicine, and civilian fuel. Sunset clauses and mandatory congressional reauthorization should be attached to any sanctions or tariff regime.

Our force structure should be sized to the missions we actually intend to carry out. The US military is by far the most powerful in the world, it is an unjustifiable level of over-preparedness. With the goal of reducing US military spending to 50% of its current level over the next 15 years, we should reevaluate our defense spending priorities and focus on reductions in capacity while maintaining readiness. The Pentagon budget should be cut every year it fails an audit, and redundant overseas bases should be closed.

While nuclear weapons will certainly remain an essential part of US military capability for the foreseeable future, our nuclear strategy should be aimed at the eventual goal of a world without them. To that end:

- We should negotiate an expanded New START successor treaty to govern a mutual drawdown in nuclear weapons, within a framework that can include all nuclear powers.
- We should adopt a legally binding no-first-use policy for nuclear weapons.
- We should ratify the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty.
    

Congress must also reclaim its constitutional authority over the use of force. The 2001 AUMF should be repealed, and the War Powers Act should be amended to close loopholes and strengthen enforcement.

The War Powers Act should be updated to require congressional authorization before introducing US forces into any hostilities, except to repel an actual armed attack on the United States. Any such emergency use of force should terminate automatically, with appropriations cut off, absent congressional authorization within 30 days.  
  
Hostilities should be explicitly defined to include drone strikes, standoff strikes, special operations raids, offensive cyber operations, direct support to belligerents, and any other comparable use of force that successive presidents have used to avoid congressional oversight and conduct illegal wars. Individual members of Congress should be granted standing to sue for unauthorized uses of force, with expedited review and political-question dismissal barred. 

• Tipping brought up that redundant might be vauge in reference to overseas bases.
• Bingaman brought up that it implies having a standing army
• Henry brought up that China and Russia should be explicitly mentioned with a stance against them in the plank.
• Plank returned to platform committee for further work.

Financial Policy Proposal

• tabled to next week
• Ward motioned to adjourn OKeefe seconded.

Meeting Recording

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xAsQKPBdTA