Have you ever heard a manipulative argument where someone doesn’t come out and say where they stand? Well, this election year that kind of argument has been turned into a ballot question. Opponents of the clean-elections law (in other words, state reps who want to stay in power) have pushed through a question asking voters whether they support “tax-payer money” being used to support the law.
A big part of a candidates job today is fundraising. Because of this, those who can give financial support get a louder voice and power becomes concentrated in the hands of a few veteran politicians and their cash cows. The law aims to end that, by guarantee all qualifying candidates financial support, limiting contributions and banning soft-money.
Please, don’t listen to all their rationalizations. Political operatives oppose clean elections for simple, obvious reasons. If this referendum passes, they plan to use it as an excuse to gut a law approved by 67% of voters in ’98. The “no” campaign is well financed and they may succeed in tricking uninformed voters with the question’s wording. So, every resident who supports more democratic elections needs to turn out and vote to stop them.
Thomas Einstein