Move To Amend U.S. Constitution Initiative Filed in Washington State

 

Initiative Filed with Secretary of State on Saturday

By Janine Unsoeld
www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com

A state initiative seeking to amend the U.S. Constitution was submitted electronically to the Washington Secretary of State's office on Saturday, say organizers.

The full text of the initiative is available on the WAmend website at www.WAmend.org.

The summary provided to Secretary of State Kim Wyman is:

The voters of the State of Washington urge immediate action by the current and future Washington State Congressional delegations to propose a joint resolution for an amendment to the United States Constitution clarifying that:

 

1)      The rights of people protected by the Constitution of the United States are the rights of natural persons only.

 

2)      All citizens should have equal voice in the political process, and no person or artificial legal entity should gain undue influence over government as a result of financial resources. Federal, state, and local governments shall be fully empowered to regulate all political contributions and expenditures to meet this goal.

 

3)      All political contributions and expenditures shall be publicly disclosed in a full and timely manner.

 

Kim Jordan, a WAmend organizer from Whidbey Island, was in Olympia on Thursday night to meet with South Sound activists and solicit support for the initiative’s language. 

“I got involved with this movement because, over the years, I finally came to realize that government and the political parties do not function like I thought they did. I thought that politicians were dependent on the people. But too many times I saw that only a few voices - those of very wealthy interests - seemed to be controlling the conversation and that our representatives seemed to listen to them, or fear them, far more than you and I. So I knew it had to do with money…. both inside and outside of the campaigns and how it controls candidates, political parties, legislation and just about every other aspect of the political system,” said Jordan.

The statewide group is quickly becoming organized and learning lessons from the state’s recent I-522 debacle. The Washington Coalition to Amend the Constitution is 27 organizations with about 1,450 volunteer petition gatherers so far.

Jordan asked for volunteers, saying that 3000 people are desired to accomplish the work of signature gathering by June 30, 2014.

“I-522 was a top down structure – that is not us. We are a volunteer, grassroots, statewide initiative, building teams throughout the state…our goal is to give templates and tools to local groups, and let them do their own field work….” Jordan told the local group, which has been active for several years in various forms.

According to a 2012 USA Today/Gallup Poll, 87% of Americans say money in the political process is a problem and want it solved.

Ninety U.S. Congressional House of Representative members and 28 U.S. Senators have announced their support for a constitutional amendment.

According to WAmend, 18 Washington State senators and 38 representatives support a U.S. Constitutional amendment, including South Sound 22^nd District Senator Karen Fraser and Representatives Chris Reykdal and Sam Hunt.

Over 600 counties and cities nationwide have voted for measures calling for an end to money as free speech.

In Washington State, thirteen cities have passed resolutions supporting the move to amend: Port Townsend, Bellingham, Seattle, Langley, La Conner, Coupeville, Olympia, Kirkland, Sequim, Walla Walla, Tacoma, Oak Harbor, and Anacortes.

Three Washington counties, Jefferson, Island, and Snohomish have also passed resolutions in support of the movement.

The Washington Coalition to Amend the Constitution is 27 organizations with 1,450 volunteer signature gatherers so far. The group is seeking 300,000 signatures as a buffer to ensure they get valid 250,000 signatures.

“This is do-able!” said Jordan.

Several groups have worked on the initiative’s wording, which has gone through about nine versions and will have to pass muster at the code revisers and attorney general’s office, and a Thurston County judge. The petition is expected to be printed around January 17 or 18.

“Our strategy is based on Colorado’s and Montana’s successful method,” said Jordan.

It is predicted by some that opposition will be quiet, given that the initiative is non-binding.

Language about how candidates are going to pay for campaigns is not addressed in the proposed initiative language.

WAmend is seeing a surge of support since I-522 went under because activists saw the result of corporate spending, and approximately sixty people are signed up so far to volunteer with the campaign in Thurston County, many of them who were activists with I-522, says Jordan.

“This is a different deal than I-522…I-522 had paid petition gatherers, and grassroots efforts were pushed off to the side. This is a different ballgame – this is a real citizen’s initiative. That’s what many of us thought I-522 was, but it wasn’t….” she said.
Mike Savoca, chair of the Olympia Move To Amend group, said that despite the differences in methodology to amend the Constitution, the point is that campaign spending by corporations should be limited.

"The sky should not be the limit...within days, we saw support for I-522 erode with millions of dollars and lies...The goal is equal access for an equal voice, otherwise politicians will be in contradiction to the Constitution,” he said.

Although the local group tabled outright merging with the state WAmend group, those present supported the proposed language and will work with the organization.

The Olympia Move to Amend group agreed to support the following wording to describe their own efforts: “Through collective action we pledge to work toward the common goal of educating the public about corporate personhood, with the ultimate goal of passing a 28^th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution stating that a corporation is not a person and as such does not possess the constitutional rights of a human being, and thus corporate campaign spending is not free speech and as such shall be subject to legislative regulation.”

Cindy Black, a WAmend organizer from Seattle, said, “I see this as a unifying issue to include seniors to youth. It’s about educating people about this issue. Whether it passes in November or not, the work continues….”

Jeff Eidsness, state organizer for Wolf-PAC, agreed, saying, “I think it’s an awesome way to network…we have support on this from all sides.”

Wolf-PAC is working on the same issue in a different way - through an Article V convention via the state legislatures. Some say this is the only official way to go about changing the U.S. Constitution.

Asked later about how he got involved with the issue, Eidsness said, “My passion for this issue stems from the level of disgust with the legalized corruption we've been handed. I grew up in a military family, and spent some of my youth in Hawaii, steeped in the lore of Pearl Harbor/WWII and the USS Arizona in particular. We were taught about the sacrifices, the blood, sweat and tears, that were offered so other people could have a better life, so it was easy for me to buy into Obama's whole Change idea.

"Well, things are different for sure, but nothing like most of us were expecting. I'm not a politically active individual by nature...(but) watching the news, it was obvious that the system wasn't working….One way I got my news was via an online talk show, The Young Turks.

"The Young Turk’s founder started Wolf PAC during Occupy Wall Street and I sat on the sidelines watching until early 2013 when I started actively participating in the most important course correction that our country has needed in generations....Given all the sacrifices others have made for this country in the past, using the system to get our politicians to do the right thing is the least I can do.”

Wolf-PAC conducts weekly conference calls to exchange updates and ideas. For more information, contact Jeff Eidsness at jeff@wolf-pac.com or (360) 349-2120.

The Olympia Move to Amend organization meets bimonthly on the first Thursday and the second Wednesday of each month. For more information, contact Mike Savoca at masavoca@fairpoint.net or go to www.movetoamend.org or www.WAmend.org.

For more information about money in politics, read “Dollarocracy and the Movement to Amend the Constitution,” November 17, 2013, Little Hollywood, and other articles at www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com.

Dollarocracy and the Movement to Amend the Constitution

Above: John Nichols, at the podium, and Robert McChesney visited Olympia earlier this week to discuss their latest book, "Dollarocracy: How the Money and Media-Election Complex is Destroying America," at The Evergreen State College.

By Janine Unsoeld

www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com

Citing the influence money has in politics and the demise of true journalism, authors Robert McChesney and John Nichols fired up the crowd and lit fires under butts talking earlier this week about their new book, Dollarocracy: How the Money and Media-Election Complex is Destroying America, at The Evergreen State College.

McChesney, a graduate of The Evergreen State College, was introduced by his former professor, Tom Rainey, who called McChesney a socially committed student and scholarly hellraiser.

About 100 were in attendance, including 40 students from an Evergreen class called Political Economy of Public Education.

Providing multiple history lessons from the Founding Fathers and the writing of the U.S. Constitution right up to the current City of Seattle city council race between Socialist Kshama Sawant, who recently won the election over incumbent Robert Conlin, both speakers provided a hard hitting, keen analysis of the influence money has on American media and politics.

McChesney said he and Nichols came up with the idea for their latest book when a 2012 Princeton study of democracy and the federal government showed that the bottom 90% of people’s values and concerns were not acknowledged. The book’s introduction by Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) says that nothing can pass Congress that is opposed by Wall Street.

McChesney noted that even Jimmy Carter, speaking in Germany in July when he thought he was speaking off the record, said America today is no longer a functioning democracy.

“Half the population is now considered to be at poverty level or low-income…we’re back to where we were in the 1920’s” said McChesney.

Citing a loss of 20,000 journalists since 2009, Nichols, a journalist and correspondent for The Nation, asserted that the ones that remain pretend they’re covering the news.

In reference to television ads passing as news, Nichols said, “The standard of news media now is whether the (advertising) check clears…As journalism disappears, it tries to do it on the cheap, talking about Michelle Obama’s work against obesity issues, talking about Ted Cruz….(but) there’s a grassroots activism - 16 states have petitioned to overturn Citizen United - and yet you aren’t told about it. It’s real, it’s happening, and you need to be a part of it…we’re at the tipping point.”

Move to Amend is a non-partisan coalition of over 300,000 individuals and organizations whose goal it is to amend the US Constitution to end corporate rule and get big money out of politics by overturning the U.S. Supreme court decision in Citizens United vs. Federal Election Commission. 

The proposed amendment would overturn court decisions that granted corporations the status of "personhood" which allows unlimited corporate campaign spending.

Nichols said that Washington State is the number one example of Dollarocracy and that their paperback version of Dollarocracy will feature Washington State, the GMO issue and the Grocery Association’s $23 million dollar contribution toward the demise of I-522 - the result of when corporations enter into politics.

“....Their profits were threatened by the reality of labeling. They succeeded in their effort to confuse people so much that people voted against it. That’s Dollarocracy in play. That’s not how it’s supposed to be….”

Nichols asserted that our Founding Fathers did not intend for the Constitution to be a static document. It was amended ten times in the first four years.

“Journalism is so fair and balanced, it treats a lie just like the truth!” exclaimed Nichols, “If we do not acknowledge what’s happening today, that will be our future. Amend the Constitution. Let’s eliminate the Electoral College….Can we do it?”

In closing, Nichols told a story:

“There’s a girl, seven or eight years old, and she’s walking up some steps. She’s going to work in a mill – she’s not going to school. Her fingers are small, tiny, and good at changing bobbins….sometimes the machines would start up while she was changing the bobbins, and take her finger or hand. And that was OK back then, because if that happened, she could go work in a clothing factory. Jews, Christians, Muslims, all working together. She would go to work on the 10^th floor of the factory, and, sometimes, a fire would break out. They’d run to the door, but it was locked shut to prevent workers from sneaking a bathroom break…and they’d either burn alive or jump out the windows….

In the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in New York, they chose to jump. As mothers came to pick their daughters up off the sidewalks, their grief turned to anger. Women were not allowed to vote then….Over a 10 year period, women organized, and reforms took place. They amended the Constitution three times: to vote, to elect the Senate, and enact taxing and regulatory reforms to tell people they can’t lock the doors at factories, they can’t employ children. Child labor laws were enacted, unions began….

"We are in a similar moment today. Are you the equals of your grandmothers? Your grandfathers?....Five hundred cities have enacted resolutions to amend the Constitution. If you don’t engage now, you’ll be on the sidelines of democracy….”

The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire of March 25, 1911 killed 123 women and 23 men. The youngest victims were 14 years old. 

Move To Amend Efforts in Washington State

The movement to amend the Constitution is active in the South Sound area. Mike Savoca, of the Olympia Move to Amend group was present at McChesney’s and Nichols’ presentation.

“We testified last February before the legislature in favor of a bill, HR 4001 and SR 8002, in favor of a 28th Amendment and were successful in the House but the bill was killed in committee by the Senate Governmental Operations chair, Pam Roach,” said Savoca later.

 

The Olympia Move to Amend statement says:

As we work for peace, sustainability and human rights, over and over again, we are opposed by the corruption of our political election system by big money and big, multinational, corporations

A corporation is not a person, it does not live, breath, bring forth children nor die.  The first and primary objective of multinational corporations is profit and the acquisition of shareholder wealth.   Nowhere in the US Constitution does the word "corporation" appear! 

A corporation is an invented legal entity. Like all inventions , corporations are not necessarily good nor bad. The regulation of our inventions determines if they will be the source of prosperity…... or our demise. 

The unlimited power of multinational corporations and big money in our electoral  system threatens our very survival as a society, and as people around the planet.

 

To learn more about local efforts to amend the Constitution, contact Michael Savoca, Olympia Move To Amend, at masavoca@fairpoint.net or go to www.movetoamend.org or www.wamend.org.