LWV Bulletin Nov Dec 2015 for...

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Winnebago Voter November / December 2015

Calendar

November / December 2015 Thursday, Nov. 5: 5:30 – 8:00 pm

Soapbox Series, Oshkosh Country Club

John Nichols, Money in Politics Monday, Nov 9: 6:30 – 8:30 pm

LWV Board Meeting, 1202 Algoma Blvd.

Wednesday, Nov. 11: 11:50 am

Food for Thought Lunch Primo Restaurant, 2605 Jackson St. Carolyn Castore, LWV WI Redistricting Update

Saturday, Nov. 14: 9:30 – 11:30 am

Coughlin Center, 625 E. County Y

Consensus on Constitutional Amendment

Study Light refreshments and beverage provided. (see pages 6-9)

Thursday, Nov. 17: 7- 9 pm Workshop for Candidates, Winnebago County Court House, Room 60. Saturday, Dec. 5: 9:30 am LWV-Winnebago County (northern region) Menasha Library Planning session for voter

registration drives.

Wednesday, Dec. 9: 11:50 am

Food for Thought Lunch

Primo Restaurant, 2605 Jackson St. Humans of Oshkosh, Grace Lim UWO

Journalism Dept.

Tuesday, December 29: 5:30 – 7:30 pm

LWV Holiday Party, 1910 S. Westhaven

Drive, bring spouse/friend, tasty food to share

Soapbox Series

Fundraiser

John Nichols, political writer for The Nation

magazine and associate editor of Madison

Capital Times

“Dollarocracy:

How Money Has Harmed Wisconsin Democracy and What We Must Do to

Reverse the Harm”

Thurs November 5 5- 5:30 Social Hour

5:30 – 6:30 Hors d’oeuvres 6:30 – 7:30 Presentation

Reservations due Oct. 31

Call Kathy at 231-4770

Oshkosh Country Club, 11 W. Ripple

Avenue, Oshkosh

To see John Nichols home page at The Nation and blog, go here: http://www.thenation.com/authors/john-nichols/

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September Lunch Presenter Jim Bowman Explains the Move to Amend Proposal

Jim Bowman, Appleton, (pictured right) has worked on the proposed Constitutional amendment Move to Amend to undo the so-called Citizens United decision by the US Supreme Court, January 2010. This decision undid the provision in the McCain Feingold law, 2002 Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, that prohibited corporations (including nonprofit corporations) and unions from making independent expenditures and "electioneering communications." This decision ruled that corporations and non-profit organizations and labor unions are individuals. The proposed amendment seeks to control campaign spending and funding so that contributions can only come from individuals (and corporations would not be classified as individuals). The Supreme Court based their decision on four previous Supreme Court decisions that treated corporations and organizations as individual citizens. The amendment appeared on the ballot in Appleton, Menasha and Neenah at the last election. It passed. Further information on Move to Amend can be found on its website: http://www.movetoamend.org/. Mr. Bowman explained the importance of spending and fund raising for politicians. He said the cost of getting elected to the House of Representatives has risen 112% since 1986. The percentage of the rise in the Senate is 62%. Congressmen raise this money via fundraisers in District of Columbia restaurants that have almost daily fundraisers for members of Congress. This raises the question: will representatives follow the wishes of their contributors or their constituents? (I think that is a no-brainer.)

UW Oshkosh Chancellor Andrew Leavitt Tells How he will Meet UW System Challenges

UW Oshkosh’s 11th Chancellor Andrew Leavitt told League members and guests at the October lunch what attracted him to move here and take on the role of chancellor was the “large comprehensive university in an urban area.” Oshkosh is, he admitted, the “largest city I’ve ever lived in.” Pictured left Kathy Propp, Chancellor Leavitt, & Ann Marshall)

Chancellor Leavitt arrived in Oshkosh November 2014 from the University of North Georgia. He has a Ph.D in chemistry with minors in physics and math. He is also an accomplished musician, playing guest saxophone in the UWO jazz band. In his presentation he wasted no time in addressing the University’s biggest problem: cuts made to the UW system by the state legislature. The $350 million cut to the system resulted in a $7.5 million cut to UW Oshkosh. Chancellor Leavitt said that the last year with no tuition charges was 1970. That year the UW System came into being as a union of all the state’s public four- year, graduate, doctoral campuses and the two-year campuses. Currently tuition and fees account for two-thirds of UWO’s budget. Chancellor Leavitt said the state provides the other one-third. Also the state imposed a tuition freeze that is in effect for two more years. This is not the first year that state government has cut the University System’s budget; many cuts have been made in the last 20 years. But in those previous years it was possible to handle the cuts by reducing spending on supplies and services, not salaries. Ninety per cent of UWO’s budget goes to salary and only 10 per cent “to all the rest.” Still Chancellor Leavitt maintains that there will be no firing of professors or staff. Instead the University will “use attrition and retirement to reduce faculty and staff.” He sees the University developing

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“greater self-reliance.” “We can generate our own revenue,” he said. These financial cuts will be spread over three years. Chancellor Leavitt thanked previous Chancellor Wells who left a “nice fund balance.” Much of this fund is obligated to various sources, but some of it can help deal with the spending cuts the state demanded. He likes the link created between the city and the University. He seeks to create more engagement there and with the retired faculty. (I attended Chancellor Leavitt’s installation at the EAA World War II hangar and noted many city, county, and business people in attendance. Both Oshkosh mayor Steve Cummings and Winnebago County Executive Mark Harris spoke.) It is clear that Chancellor likes Oshkosh (he singled out Menominee Park as a jewel for the city.) He is very upbeat and positive about the University’s and the city’s future. He also said the community should embrace diversity. He is a member of this year’s Leadership Oshkosh class.

John Nichols’ Publications The following list of John Nichols’ publications was assembled by Vicki Lenz, Menasha librarian

and LWV Winnebago County secretary. Hope you can find some time to check out these books, articles etc.

Books 2013. John Nichols & Robert W. McChesney, Dollarocracy: How the Money-and-Media-Election

Complex is Destroying America. New York: Nation Books. 2012. Uprising: How Wisconsin Renewed the Politics of Protest, from Madison to Wall Street 2011. The "S" Word: A Short History of an American Tradition...Socialism. 2010. Robert W. McChesney and John Nichols. The Death and Life of American Journalism: The Media

Revolution that Will Begin the World Again. Nation Books. 2006. John Nichols (Author), Robert W. McChesney (Author), Tom Tomorrow (Illustrator), Tim Robbins (Foreword). Tragedy & Farce: How the American Media Sell Wars, Spin Elections and Destroy Democracy. 2006. The Genius of Impeachment: The Founders' Cure for Royalism. 2005. The Rise and Rise of Richard B. Cheney: Unlocking the Mysteries of the Most Powerful Vice

President in American History. 2004. Dick: The Man Who Is President. 2002 (with Robert W. McChesney). Our Media, Not Theirs: The Democratic Struggle Against Corporate

Media. 2001 John Nichols and David Deschamps. Jews for Buchanan: Did You Hear the One About the Theft of

the American Presidency? 2000 (with Robert W. McChesney, et al.). It's the Media, Stupid!

Articles 2010: John Nichols and Robert W. McChesney. "How to Save Journalism", The Nation. 2009: John Nichols and Robert W. McChesney. "The Death and Life of Great American Newspapers", The Nation.

John Nichols lives in Madison and works as an editor for The Capital Times. He is Washington correspondent for The Nation and writes "The Beat" blog for that magazine. He is a regular contributor to In

These Times and The Progressive. He appears in the documentary films Outfoxed, Unprecedented: The 2000

Presidential Election, Orwell Rolls in His Grave, and Call It Democracy. Nichols is co-founder, with Bob McChesney and Josh Silver, of Free Press.

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Infrastructure and Economy Examined, submitted by Kathy Propp

Did you know that the ASCE (American Society of Civil Engineers) Infrastructure Report Card gave

America’s infrastructure a grade of D+ in 2013, while Wisconsin earned a grade of C in 2007? Carl Sutter, Vice Pres, McMahon Engineers/Architects and American Society of Civil Engineers Region 3 Governor, presented an overview of the 16 categories (bridges, aviation, roads, sewer, drinking water, energy, transit, and more) and suggested remedies. For more information on the Report Card, visit the ASCE website: http://www.infrastructurereportcard.org/executive-summary

Mr. Sutter was followed by Dr. Kevin McGee, UW Oshkosh Dept. of Economics Professor, who argued that there are economic and safety consequences of failing to invest in infrastructure repair and

maintenance and that such investment now at a period of low interest rates would stimulate the economy and create jobs.

The program was sponsored by LWV Wisconsin (LWV Milwaukee took the lead), the American Society of Civil Engineers, and UW Oshkosh Engineering Technology Program. The event was held at the UW Oshkosh Alumni Welcome Center on Sept. 23.

Pictured are Kevin McGee, Carol Diggelman LWV Milwaukee County,

and Carl Sutter.

(Ed. Note: the following articles were submitted by Kathy Propp and Ann Marshall who attended the LWV

WI State Issues Briefing with Peggy Cox and Carol Codner on Oct. 10.)

Climate change: current threats and opportunities (by Kathy Propp)

Tia Nelson is proud to be the daughter of former Wisconsin Govenor and U.S. Sen. Gaylord Nelson, the founder of Earth Day and the environmental movement. She shares his passion for the environment, having spent 17 years at the Nature Conservancy as Director of Global Climate Change Initiative and 11 years as executive secretary of the Wisconsin Board of Commissioners of Public Lands (BCPL). She is now Managing Director for Climate Change at the Outrider Foundation, a nonpartisan organization dedicated to educating Americans about long-term issues that affect the health of the planet.

In April the three member BCPL public lands agency board banned its employees from discussing climate change while on the job, prompting Tia’s resignation. The board softened its policy in June, voting to instead ban employees from advocating for global warming policy changes. See http://wuwm.com/post/tia-nelson-says

Tia talked about key issues in climate change and lamented the fact that 60% of Americans believe that climate change is real and alarming, while she claimed that 56% of Congressional Republicans are climate deniers. The www.billmoyers.com website outlines the campaign money trail and may explain the reluctance of some in Congress to take steps to mitigate the effects of climate change.

Election Laws and Voter Turnout - Surprising Findings (By Ann Marshall)

In the 2012 election, voter turnout in Wisconsin was third highest in the nation with only North

Dakota and Minnesota having higher numbers. Barry Burden, Director of the Elections Research Center at UW-Madison shared some findings about what factors do or don't affect voter turnout. For example, there is very little or no effect on voter turnout in states where "early voting" either in-person or by no-excuse absentee voting is introduced. However, removing any form of early voting possibilities that already exist

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probably has a negative effect. Addressing Redistricting - one study found that where people "choose" to live contributes to

polarization and incumbency - i.e. those living in the suburbs vs. those who live in the inner city. It is difficult to show the effects on turnout of requiring an ID for voting. There is not enough data at this point. Of interest to note, however, is that more that 300,000 Wisconsin voters who are already registered lack the necessary ID.

Collaborating for Reform (By Ann Marshall)

Jay Heck is Director of Common Cause which is the largest non-partisan political advocacy organization in Wisconsin. The LWV of Wisconsin works closely with that group addressing issues of mutual interest such as voting rights, redistricting and campaign finance reform.

Recently Common Cause and LWV WI collaborated on creating legally accurate handouts that league members can use to educate the public about what ID is acceptable to use at the polls and how one can obtain an ID if necessary. There is an organization in Wisconsin called Wisconsin Voices that is made up of many groups interested in advocating to protect the rights of citizens. Examples are LWV, Citizen Action, Fair Wisconsin, Common Cause, NAACP and many others. Where appropriate they support each other and can speak as one collective voice in efforts to further the cause of fair and open governance.

Two Ex-State Senators Urge Redistricting Reform at LWVGGB Program

Four LWV Winnebago County League members drove to Green Bay on October 26 to attend the Redistricting Forum presented by the LWV of Greater Green Bay. Former State Senators, Tim Cullen (D) and Dale Schultz (R) gave their views on the impact of the 2011 Wisconsin redistricting on voters. “Politicians are selecting the voter,” not “voters selecting politicians,” Senator Cullen said. Gerrymandering was not an issue in any of the redistricting done after the censuses of 1970, ’80, ’90, and 2001 as the statehouse was split. That was not the case in 2010 with Republican majorities in the Assembly, Senate, and Governor. The process of Gerrymandering that went on then is called “packing” and “cracking.” Senator Cullen listed reasons why Gerrymandering is harmful: The legislators pick their voters; There’s a shift in the “election that matters” from the November election to the August primary; 55 our of 99 Assemblymen ran unopposed in the last election; If a legislator has a “safe seat” he/she can avoid any public opinion, doesn’t have to talk to the general public and can avoid all public meetings, functions, etc. Since the Legislature is able to vote for the size and shape of the voting districts, legislators can guarantee their jobs for 10 years. Ex-senator Dale Schultz reminded the audience that Democracy is a “fragile thing.” As a Professor at UW Platteville, he has noticed that young people “are really turned off by politics.” “Why,” he asked, “are people so pissed off?” He gave a couple of reasons: Politicians aren’t about “us”; they’re about “themselves.” People are angry as “None of the things promised ever get done.” Money without limits and the chance to pick their own voters further annoys voters. Politicians seem to see the average citizen as if he were a “fly” unwanted and needless. Yet, he thinks the citizens’ anger is important. This led to his discussion of the lawsuits filed nationally and in Wisconsin on attempts to change redistricting procedures. Gerrymandering is not solely a Wisconsin problem. There are oral arguments in Wisconsin on November 4. And there is a bill in the State Assembly to “elevate this [methods of redistricting] as an issue.” The basis of the lawsuit states the rights of people’s votes are denied and the value of their vote is decreased.

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BACKGROUND INFORMATION FOR NOV. 14 CONSENSUS MEETING

In 1787, delegates from twelve of the thirteen states then in existence met in Philadelphia to revise the Articles of Confederation. Instead, they drafted a totally new document, what we know as the U.S. Constitution. It was unanimously ratified by the states. While this all seems very long ago, how the Constitution began and how the 1787 Convention was convened and conducted are cited in the current debate about calling a Convention under Article V of the U.S. Constitution. Article V provides two ways of proposing amendments. Congress, by a two-thirds vote of both chambers,

may propose constitutional amendments to the states for ratification. OR, the legislatures of two-thirds of

the states (34 at present) may ask Congress to call a convention to propose amendments to the Constitution; this is commonly called an Article V Convention. Amendments proposed by either method must be ratified by three-fourths of the states, 38 at present. The first method has been used by Congress to submit 33 amendments to the states, beginning with the Bill of Rights. Of these, 27 were approved; 26 are currently in effect. The second method, an Article V Convention, has never been successfully invoked.

CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT CONSENSUS QUESTIONS: Our League discusses and comes to consensus. Our results are submitted to LWV US Board and compiled with all other League opinions to form a position that will be adopted by the June 2016 national convention.

First we must determine whether League positions support the proposed amendment. Then the questions in Part I are to develop guidelines for evaluating constitutional amendment proposals. Part II asks about

aspects of an Article V Constitutional Convention that may be important in conducting such a convention. Part III asks two overall balancing questions between process and positions.

Part I - Considerations for Evaluating Constitutional Amendment Proposals

1. Which of these should or should not be a consideration in identifying an appropriate and well-

crafted amendment?

1(a) Whether the public policy objective addresses matters of such acute and abiding importance

that the fundamental charter of our nation must be changed.

�� Should �� Should not �� No consensus

PRO: Amendments are changes to a document that provides stability to our system and should be

undertaken to address extreme problems or long-term needs.

CON: When public sentiment is overwhelmingly in favor of change, restraint based on veneration

of the document is misplaced.

1(b) Whether the amendment as written would be effective in achieving its policy objective.


ALL MEMBERS INVITED: LWV CONSENSUS MEETING, SAT. NOV. 14, 9:30 AM Coughlin Center, 625 E. County Y, Oshkosh. Beverage and light refreshment provided. Review the questions below, go to the linked articles and the LWV US website for more information. Come to share your opinions and help our league come to consensus.

Committee: Carol Codner, Anne Hintz, Kathy Propp

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PRO: Amendments that may be unenforceable, miss the objective or have unintended consequences

will not work to achieve the policy objective.

CON: It’s all right to deliberately put something in the Constitution that will need to be interpreted

by courts and legislatures over time.

1(c) Whether the amendment would either make our political system more democratic or protect individual rights.


PRO: Most amendments have sought to make our system more democratic by extending voting

rights, for example, or to protect the rights of minorities from powerful interests. CON: What has been typical in the past is not a good measure of what’s appropriate or necessary

today or in the future, especially since there have been relatively few amendments.

1(d) Whether the policy objective can be achieved by a legislative or political approach that is

less difficult than a constitutional amendment.


PRO: Due to the difficulty of amending the Constitution, it is important to consider whether

legislation or political action is more likely to succeed than an amendment, in order to achieve the

objective and to expend resources wisely. CON: Important policy objectives should sometimes be pursued through a constitutional amendment

even though it may be difficult for it to be enacted and even when other options are available.

1(e) Whether the public policy objective is more suited to a constitutional and general

approach than to a statutory and detailed approach.


PRO: It is important to consider whether the goal can best be achieved by an overall value

statement, which will be interpreted by the courts, or with specific statutory detail to resolve

important issues and reduce ambiguity. CON: Getting action on an issue is more important than how a policy objective can best be

achieved.

Part II - Aspects of an Article V Constitutional Convention

2. What conditions should or should not be in place for an Article V Constitutional Convention

initiated by the states?

2(a) The Convention must be transparent and not conducted in secret.

�� Agree �� Disagree �� No consensus

PRO: The public has a right to know what is being debated and voted on. CON: The lack of public scrutiny and the ability to negotiate in private may enable delegates to

more easily reach agreement. 2(b) Representation at the Convention must be based on population rather than one state, one vote.


PRO: The delegates represent citizens and should be distributed by U.S. population.

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CON: The U.S. is really a federation of states that must agree by state to any change in the

Constitution.

2(c) State delegates must be elected rather than appointed.


PRO: Delegates represent citizens and therefore need to be elected by them.

CON: Appointment allows for experts who wouldn’t run in an election.

2(d) Voting at the Convention must be by delegate, not by state.


PRO: As at the Articles of Confederation Convention, delegates from one state can have varying

views and should be able to express them by individual votes. CON: Because any amendment proposal will go to the states for ratification, voting by state blocs—

however the delegates are originally chosen—reflects the probability of eventual ratification.

2(e) The Convention must be limited to a specific topic.


PRO: It is important to guard against a “runaway convention”. CON: The convention alternative was provided for a time when Congress was not listening, so the delegates should not be constrained.

2(f) Only state resolutions on a single topic count when determining if a Convention must be

called.


PRO: Counting state requests by topic ensures that there is sufficient interest in a particular subject

to call a convention, and enhances citizen interest and participation in the process. CON: There is no requirement for Congress to count state requests by topic and when enough

states are unhappy enough to ask for a convention, it should happen.

2(g) The validity of state “calls” for an Article V Constitutional Convention must be

determined by the most recent action of the state. If a state has enacted a rescission of its call,

that rescission should be respected by Congress.


PRO: A state legislature should be free to determine its position in regard to an Article V

Constitutional Convention. A rescission should be equally acceptable to Congress as a state’s call

for a convention. CON: A state legislature’s call for a Convention cannot be overturned because the process may

never end.

3. Should the League oppose an Article V Constitutional Convention to propose amendments to

the U.S. Constitution because of unresolved questions about the powers and processes of such a

convention?


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PRO: The Constitution is too important to trust an unknown or uncontrollable process. It is

unclear whether conditions or safeguards regarding powers and processes for a convention can be

successfully put in place.

CON: A convention is intended to be an unrestrained process to propose amendments to the

Constitution.

Part III – Balancing Questions

4. Should the League consider supporting a Constitutional amendment that will advance a

League position even if: 4(a) There are significant problems with the actual amendment as proposed?

�� Should consider �� Should not consider �� No consensus

PRO: Our positions have been studied and agreed to. If other organizations are supporting an

amendment in a policy area we also support, we might participate even though it is inconsistent with

the evaluation guidelines we support under Part I. CON: If the League has a consensus on the evaluation guidelines outlined in Part I, then the

League should not campaign on an amendment when it is inconsistent with those standards, even

though the League supports the policy outcome.

4(b) It is being put forward by a procedural process the League would otherwise oppose?

�� Should consider �� Should not consider �� No consensus

PRO: Our positions have been studied and agreed to. If other organizations are supporting an

amendment in a policy area we also support, we might participate even though it is inconsistent with

the process criteria we support under Part II. CON: If the League has a consensus on the process criteria outlined in Part II, then the League

should not campaign for an amendment when the process being proposed is inconsistent with those

standards, even though the League supports the policy outcome.

References for Consensus Questions:

Synopsis of “Constitutional Amendmentitis"

http://forum.lwv.org/member-resources/article/synopsis-%E2%80%9Cconstitutional-amendmentitis

Synopsis of “Constitutional Amendments and the Constitutional Common Law” http://forum.lwv.org/member-resources/article/synopsis-%E2%80%9Cconstitutional-amendments-and-constitutional-common-law%E2%80%9D

Constitutional Amendment Study Guide

http://forum.lwv.org/member-resources/article/constitutional-amendment-study-guide

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The Winnebago Voter

1936 Hazel St.

Oshkosh WI 54901

President Barack Obama Senator Ron Johnson http://whitehouse.gov http://ronjohnson.senate.gov

Senator Tammy Baldwin Rep. Glenn Grothman http://baldwin.senate.gov http://Grothman.house.gov

Sen. Rick Gudex (18

th Dist) Rep. Gordon Hintz (54

th Dist)

[email protected] [email protected]

Sen. Roger Roth (19th

Dist) Rep. Michael Schraa (53rd

Dist) [email protected] [email protected]

Rep. Mike Rohrkaste (55

th Dist) Rep. Amanda Stuck (57

th Dist)

[email protected] [email protected] Rep. David Murphy (56

th Dist)

[email protected] Gov. Scott Walker Wisconsin Legislative Hotline: 800-362-9472 http://[email protected] Capitol Hill Switchboard 202-224-3121

LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS MISSION The League of Women Voters, a non-partisan organization of men and women, encourages informed and active participation in government. Visit http://www.lwv.org, http://www.lwvwi.org, http://www.lwvwinnebago.org Members receive the bi-monthly Winnebago Voter, Forward from LWV-WI, and action alerts. Meetings are open to the public. League Membership: $50 ($75 for two in household), $10 students, $25 limited income) Winnebago County Voter Subscription only: $10.00. Dues payable to: LWV Winnebago County, 1202 Algoma Blvd, Oshkosh 54901.

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