I've been reading in the newspaper lately about a town a few counties over that's been doing some really weird stuff. Their elected leaders seem to have their heads screwed on backwards as they keep enacting ordinances that rub me and a few friends here in South Bend the wrong way. Last week their mayor fired the police chief on a whim. There have been several letters to the editor from citizens of that town who have suggested that their mayor is an SOB.
My friends and I are fit to be tied. While none of the goings on in this other town impacts us at all, it chaps our hides that those boneheads a few counties over elected these Troglodytes in the first place!! So, we decided that we're going to do something about it! We are going to mount recall efforts against the other town's mayor and most of the town council. All we need to do is find someone in that other town to serve as our frontman and we're off and running.
While the above scenario is fictitious, in my case, it is illustrative of what is taking place in Wisconsin today. While the efforts to recall 8 Republican senators are grassroots-based in the specific districts these senators represent, the efforts to recall 8 Democratic senators originates from a group, American Patriot Recall Coalition, out of UTAH.
The last time I perused a map of the United States, Utah was nowhere near Wisconsin. As far as I know, Utah citizens are not under the jurisdiction of Wisconsin law UNLESS they happen to be visiting Wisconsin or doing business in that state.
I am all for the ability of citizens to mount recall efforts against their own elected representatives. Sometimes it is the only mechanism to express great displeasure with the manner in which the elected official legislates or governs. But citizens from OTHER jurisdictions have no business whatsoever mounting recall drives.
I'm not suggesting that people outside the jurisdiction should be disallowed from contributing money to such efforts (though I think it should be greatly limited) or that individuals from other locales should be disallowed from volunteering to help, but the impetus for a recall petition must come from the voters directly affected within the appropriate jurisdiction.
To moi, that is just commonsense democracy in action.
My friends and I are fit to be tied. While none of the goings on in this other town impacts us at all, it chaps our hides that those boneheads a few counties over elected these Troglodytes in the first place!! So, we decided that we're going to do something about it! We are going to mount recall efforts against the other town's mayor and most of the town council. All we need to do is find someone in that other town to serve as our frontman and we're off and running.
While the above scenario is fictitious, in my case, it is illustrative of what is taking place in Wisconsin today. While the efforts to recall 8 Republican senators are grassroots-based in the specific districts these senators represent, the efforts to recall 8 Democratic senators originates from a group, American Patriot Recall Coalition, out of UTAH.
The last time I perused a map of the United States, Utah was nowhere near Wisconsin. As far as I know, Utah citizens are not under the jurisdiction of Wisconsin law UNLESS they happen to be visiting Wisconsin or doing business in that state.
I am all for the ability of citizens to mount recall efforts against their own elected representatives. Sometimes it is the only mechanism to express great displeasure with the manner in which the elected official legislates or governs. But citizens from OTHER jurisdictions have no business whatsoever mounting recall drives.
I'm not suggesting that people outside the jurisdiction should be disallowed from contributing money to such efforts (though I think it should be greatly limited) or that individuals from other locales should be disallowed from volunteering to help, but the impetus for a recall petition must come from the voters directly affected within the appropriate jurisdiction.
To moi, that is just commonsense democracy in action.
I agree.
ReplyDeleteBut I feel it's complicated. I mean, solidarity in the union struggle means I support the union members of Wisconsin (even if I'm simply pro-union and not actually in one), and many out of state people were present at those protests. I also support the recall of Walker and his ilk. Now, I'm not doing anything about it, but I'm sure many nation-wide organizations and people are involved. Surely.
But is that wrong? It's kind of a hard thing.
Like I wrote in the post, supporting the actions undertaken by those in the appropriate jurisdiction is no problem, but initiating the action itself is.
ReplyDeleteI guess you're right, but it seems a little like splitting hairs.
ReplyDeleteLet me pose a question to you. You actively support and vote for a progressive candidate for mayor. This gal is an ardent environmentalist who enacts a bunch of measures in your city to reduce waste and your locale's carbon footprint.
ReplyDeleteA bunch of conservatives in, say, Alabama don't like what she's doing, so they mount a recall petition to get rid of her. You have no problem with this?