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An Activist’s Life, by Thomas Leavitt » Blog Archive » Is the recall democratic?

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August 13th, 2003
The Recall

Is the recall democratic?

[Robert Scheer’s rant is impressive.

However - I don’t buy the basic premise. The recall is the product of a system so distorted by money and the power of incumbency that even one of the least popular governors in California’s history can scare off any real opposition, spend his money manipulating the opposition’s candidate selection process, then bury his opponent under a mass of negative television commercials…

even though it is sponsored by the right-wing, I believe it is fulfilling its intended purpose - providing the people of this state with a last ditch mechanism for holding our elected officers accountable… it was absolutely clear, even last fall, that in a straight up or down election, Davis would lose bigtime.

Imagine what would happen if people didn’t just have NOTA, but had the ability to vote yes or no on any nominee - and to assume office or win a primary, that person would have to win the approval of a majority of the voters! No more lesser of two evils officials elected in spite of themselves by a public left with no choice.

The system needs to be opened up, the people need to have real choices. What we have with the recall election is an outpouring of democracy unique in California (American?) history… true citizen candidates.

What is remarkable, actually, is not how many choices we have, but how few choices among “major” candidates we are still left with… one Democrat, three Republicans, one independent progressive, one Green…

in my view, that shows that the system is still broken… or that many of the smartest and most capable people in the state see the Governor’s office is a no-win situation.

-Thomas]

The California shell game
However you feel about Gray Davis, if you’re a small “d” democrat, a no vote on the recall is an obligation.

By Robert Scheer

Aug. 13, 2003 | “Take him, he’s yours.”

That was my initial response to the California recall, aimed at a conservative Democratic governor who often has betrayed the state’s large progressive base of voters — the same folks who held their noses to elect and then reelect him.

But now I don’t buy it.

[…]

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 13th, 2003 at 1:31 am, and is filed under The Recall. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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