With all the hoopla about the big
Democratic win, little attention has been given to the assault on direct
democracy. Sadly,
Florida voters caved in and passed
Amendment 3 that requires 60 percent to pass ballot initiatives instead of the
present simple majority. What
should be viewed as one of the great ironies of all times is that this amendment
passed by a statewide vote of 57.8 percent to 42.2 percent. That’s right; this terrible amendment
would not have passed under the new rule that now has become law!
Michael Mayo, writing in the
Sun-Sentinel before the election, noted: “Florida's amendment system has its faults, but it provides a
necessary and powerful counterbalance to an aloof, insulated Legislature.
Raising the amendment bar would only make it harder for citizens to flex their
muscle. And that's exactly what the
politicians and big businesses want. This amendment was put on the ballot by the
Legislature, not a petition drive. … If [Amendment 3] passes, democracy in Florida loses.”
Libertarian, liberal and conservative groups
and the Democratic and Republican candidates for governor opposed the amendment,
but were no match for corporate money.
Some $3.2 million was spent by corporate interests to
deceive the public and put a major dent in direct democracy. The sole purpose of making it more
difficult to pass ballot initiatives - that in the soggy state of
Florida amend the constitution– was to maintain the influence of lobbyists on a largely corrupt state
legislature. Big land development,
agriculture and insurance companies wanted to retain the status quo when it
comes to throwing money at legislators to get what they want. Their thinking was that citizen groups
would be less inclined to launch ballot initiatives with the higher requirement
for passage. In the past, citizen
driven ballot measures were used to correct bad state laws or to pass ones that
the corrupt legislature refused to pass.
The current effort by the Florida Hometown Democracy group
to pass a ballot measure that would grant citizens much more control over land
development in this sprawl-crazed state was a key factor in causing both the
legislature and corporate interests to mount the Amendment 3
campaign.
Presently, there are close to 50 ballot measures in the
pipeline for the 2008 ballot. Corporate interests hope that many will now be abandoned because of the
new requirement.
Interestingly, in 2002 two important
ballot measures passed by just 59 percent; one put a cap on school class size
and the other required universal pre-kindergarten classes. The 2004 amendment that raised the
minimum wage also did not get 60 percent. Since 1992, only 10 of 18 citizen initiatives have passed with more than
a 60 percent margin.
As Brent Batten wisely concluded in the Naples News: “The
process of allowing the public to pass law via majority vote provided a safety
valve against lobbyist-fueled legislative intransigence.” The same can be said for all state
legislatures and, even more importantly, the U.S. Congress. This is why many people would like a
federal law that would give all American citizens the opportunity to vote on
national ballot initiatives. Imagine that: giving we the people the opportunity to correct the corrupt
actions of our Senators and Representatives. In the long run, that might be the best
way to fight corporate and special interest corruption in
Washington,
DC.
What has happened in
Florida should be of considerable
interest to all Americans, because corporate interests may attempt to pull off a
similar con job in other states that permit citizen-driven ballot initiatives,
one of the few and most potent forms of direct democracy in the nation. Indeed, proof that expanding direct
democracy faces increasing opposition is that
Colorado voters just rejected
Petition Rights Amendment 38 by a vote of 69 percent to 31 percent.
It would have expanded and simplified
citizens' ability to put proposed changes in state and local laws on the
ballot. Proponents of the amendment
raised less than $1,000. Opponents
raised over $300,000 for TV ads; much of the money came from home builders and
other corporate interests.
Here is what an official with the
Chamber of Commerce said in favor of the
Colorado amendment: “We have to
have representative government; that's the form we've chosen, and we don't want
to get hurt by people with special interests.'" What audacity! That view from a major business special
interest that wants to keep its hold over elected legislators. Similarly, an official with the Colorado
Association of Commerce and Industry said: “We support representative government
and a more thoughtful way of solving complex problems." More thoughtful? Apparently meaning the thought that goes
into deciding how much money to spend on legislators to get what they
want.
In contrast, Dennis Polhill in
support of the amendment observed: “The establishment despises petitions because
it fears the people's voice. Petitions allow governmental reforms, just what
politicians, lobbyists and special interests fear. Petitions provide checks and
balances that make government more representative. That's
good.”
The passion among voters to move
power from one major party to the other should be expanded to restore American
democracy, something that mainstream politicians do not talk about. A key need is to expand, not shrink,
opportunities for direct democracy. It respects the collective wisdom of we the people and provides a crucial
way to offset failed representative democracy. Better than being bipartisan, direct
democracy is non-partisan or perhaps anti-partisan.
That corporate interests are working
so hard to curb direct democracy should be all that is necessary to motivate
Americans to expand it. It is a
vital way to give power to the people.
Writings 
With all the hoopla about the big
Democratic win, little attention has been given to the assault on direct
democracy. Sadly,
Florida voters caved in and passed
Amendment 3 that requires 60 percent to pass ballot initiatives instead of the
present simple majority. What
should be viewed as one of the great ironies of all times is that this amendment
passed by a statewide vote of 57.8 percent to 42.2 percent. That’s right; this terrible amendment
would not have passed under the new rule that now has become law! 
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