Earlier this month, the Atlanta-based Hall and Oates superfan William Hansmann learned just how easy it is to start a Super PAC. The 36-year-old restaurant worker was sitting around having drinks with his buddies when somebody drunkenly proposed they form a Hall and Oates-inspired political action committee to take on Mitt Romney. A form was downloaded from the Internet and faxed into the Federal Election Commission. They may have also sent in a check, but Hansmann can't quite recall. "I honestly don't even remember the whole thing," Hansmann tells Rolling Stone. "We were intoxicated in the early stage of this whole process."
A couple of weeks passed and they pretty much forgot about the whole thing, but then reporters started calling him to comment on the group, called Hall and Oates Fans for America. "When the calls started coming, it was really surprising," Hansmann says. "I guess some watchdog group or someone at the FEC saw it and pitched it over to somebody. The next thing you know, we're blowing up."
As of now, Hall and Oates Fans for America has no website, Facebook page or even a means to take in donations. They do have some plans, though. "We're working on a video," Hansmann says. "We're also working on a website, but I'm not the most computer-proficient. I managed to put up a Twitter yesterday. That was a big step. We're debating whether we're going to take donations at this point in time."
The vast Hall and Oates catalog provides a lot of material to use against Romney. "Just think of 'I Can't Go for That' or 'You Make My Dreams Come True,'" says Hansmann. "We've seen a million suggestions. Think about what we could do with 'Sara Smile.' There's a couple of Saras out there. It's almost like Hall and Oates saw the future and knew this election was coming."
"We originally tossed around the idea of calling it 'Hall and Oates-stradamus,'" he adds. "Their songs foretold the coming of Mitt Romney."
Hansmann wants to do whatever he can to prevent Mitt Romey from winning, but he isn't a Democrat. "I've been a member of the Libertarian Party for a long time," he says. "But I really support the President of the United States, regardless of who the president is on any given day. That's my policy. As for right now, that's Obama. I voted for him. That was the first time I voted outside my party. I don't plan on voting against him this time. I'm not going to say that I don't have a different of opinion with him over how he's handled certain things, but I support him. Not everyone in the group is as supportive of Obama as I am, but we just thought we'd make some funny video making fun of the whole process and how ugly it's gotten."
The group hasn't actually gotten any feedback yet from Hall and Oates. "We would love it if that happened," Hansmann says. "We started this as a joke, but then it kind of blew up. I assume they've caught wind of it. It would very, very cool if we did [hear from them]. I know in the past they've supported liberal causes… We just figure that America needs more Hall and Oates. I mean, who isn't a Hall and Oates fan? If you don't like, then you're not American... We may have been intoxicated when we started this, but we've been sobering up. This whole thing has been a sobering process, to say the least."
