Category Archives: Elections

In praise of being naive

By Steve Brawner
© 2016 by Steve Brawner Communications, Inc.

Somewhere there is a perfect spot on the spectrum between being naive and being cynical, and humans should try to find that perfect spot. But humans err, so err on the side of being naive.

I write that in the face of the most cynicism-inducing election of my lifetime. And I’m apparently not alone because a deep cynic would say that voting itself is an act of naivety, and yet Arkansans and people across the country are lining up at the polls to do it anyway.

Keep in mind that, regardless of what you think about this year’s choices, at least we had them: for the nation’s chief executive, for lawmakers and for local officials. For more than a year, two rich and powerful people who want to become even more powerful have been required to traverse the country as part of the world’s most challenging job interview. Arkansas voters this year also have a direct say in the governor’s powers; in how long county officials stay in office; in how much debt the state can incur for economic development; and whether marijuana should be used legally for medicinal purposes. True, my vote did not count for much. But it counted exactly the same as everyone else’s in Arkansas.

Giving an average citizen this kind of say is rare in world history but not so rare in today’s world, in large part because of the example set by the country where God let me be born. That’s pretty cool, which is why, even in the midst of all the cynicism of A.D. 2016, just about every polling machine was occupied at my early voting site in Benton, and why, afterwards, a family stood outside the polling place snapping a photo of their son who must have voted for the first time. They all looked pretty proud, but I guess they were just being naive.

Believing a New World would offer religious and economic freedom? You might call that naive. So was believing that freedom was worth fighting for. That self-government was possible. That former slaves and the children of slaves could participate in a society with former slaveowners and their children. That a railroad could be built across a country and a canal dug between the oceans. That wars could be won on foreign shores, and democracy was possible in far-off lands. That a man could land on the moon – in less than 10 years, no less.

It takes a certain naivety to do these things; it certainly doesn’t happen through cynicism. Cynicism is inherently an attitude of powerlessness and inaction, which is why cynics do not grow many successful businesses, plant churches, begin charities, or start movements that change things for the better. Cynicism is self-centered and fearful, and it assumes the worst of people to the point of gross inaccuracy. It’s incompatible with achievement and service because why try to achieve if seen and unseen forces doom you to failure? And why serve if you are only going to be taken advantage of? True, there are some very rich cynics today. But a lot of them only got that way by appealing to others’ cynicism.

Yes, naivety can lead to disaster, because it’s based on trust, and sometimes trust is misplaced. But better to trust too much than not enough. After disaster, a naive person can still “stoop and build ‘em up with worn-out tools,” as Rudyard Kipling wrote, because he trusts those tools.

I’ve heard it said and implied many times this year that, if either Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump wins this election, then the country will not survive.

But such deep, pervasive cynicism is far more dangerous than the outcome of one campaign. It leads to the kind of “We pretend to work and they pretend to pay us” attitude of the old Soviet Union. In the United States, structures are still in place that will limit the damage either Clinton or Trump will cause. But a cynical people quits trying, which can’t be overcome.

Anyway, I’m pretty sure there’s going to be another election in four years, and we can all give it another shot. Call me naive.

If it is broke, do fix it

Hand with ballot and boxBy Steve Brawner
© 2016 by Steve Brawner Communications, Inc.

Arkansans opposed to medical marijuana, casinos and/or to limiting jury verdicts in medical cases are probably pleased that the Supreme Court invalidated all three of the proposals.

Still it’s probably not a good thing that ballots are cluttered this year with four citizen-led initiatives where the votes won’t count for three of them. The only one that survived was another medical marijuana proposal.

If there’s anything in state government that’s broken, it’s the citizen-led ballot initiative process. Citizens submit a proposal, sometimes based on narrow self-interest, that gets approved by the attorney general. They raise hundreds of thousands of dollars and collect signatures that are approved by the secretary of state. The campaign begins. And then opponents sue over the same ballot titles that were approved by the attorney general and over the same signatures that were certified by a small army of secretary of state employees. By the time the Supreme Court makes its decision, it’s October and the ballots have already been printed. In the medical marijuana case, citizens had already started voting.

That initiative was invalidated because the Court said too many signatures had problems – some of them quite technical, such as listing a post office address rather than a residence. In her concurring opinion on the medical marijuana case, Justice Courtney Goodson complained that Act 1413 of 2013 left her no choice but to invalidate.

“The petition here failed to satisfy the onerous demands of the Act, even though there is no allegation that the signatures were invalid in any other way. The result is that the wishes of the citizens who signed the petition in good faith are being discarded, and the right of the people to pass judgment on the proposal in the voting booth has been lost,” she wrote.

Senate President Pro Tempore Jonathan Dismang, R-Searcy, the leader of the Senate, said Monday that he expects the Legislature to take steps to mend the process when it meets next year.

Legislators are allowed to recommend three constitutional amendments every two years, and did so this election cycle with measures that would let the governor keep his or her powers when leaving the state, extend county officials’ terms to four years, and allow the state to issue bigger bonds for major economic projects and allow cities and counties to fund Chambers of Commerce. Those are still on the ballot.

Dismang says the Legislature may self-impose a limit of two amendments, one from the House and one from the Senate, and that one of them could address the state’s broken ballot initiative process. That proposed amendment, which voters would see in the 2018 election, would reset the time frames for collecting signatures and require an earlier decision by the Supreme Court, at least before the voting begins. As part of the same effort, the Legislature will try to clean up the technicalities that led to some of this year’s problems.

Dismang doesn’t want to create an environment where there are more constitutional amendments – as opposed to initiated acts like the invalidated medical marijuana proposal. An act has only the force of law and can be changed by the Legislature. An amendment is the permanent law of the land.

In fact, he says it’s too easy to amend the Constitution now. Aside from the Legislature’s potential three amendments each two years, the citizen-led process makes it possible for well-funded individuals to institutionalize their own self-interest. The casino amendment would have granted a permanent constitutional monopoly to three casinos owned by two out-of-state individuals or their assignees, meaning it would have lasted through generations. One of those casinos would have been operated by the Cherokee Nation, which donated $6 million to the effort. It didn’t happen, but it could have, and he’d like to make it less likely.

The truth is that Arkansas’ Constitution is kind of a mess. While the U.S. Constitution is brief and broad, the state’s is sometimes painfully detailed and specific. Constitutional amendments should be timeless and should spell out the permanent duties and roles of government, like whether the governor keep his powers when out of state, and not set policy or make certain things legal or illegal, like medical marijuana. Those should be spelled out in law, which can be changed at any time to fit changing circumstances.

So whatever the fix is, let’s hope it results in fewer, better, broader amendments, and ballots where every vote counts.

Related: Where your vote really counts this year.

The campaign that wasn’t

By Steve Brawner
© 2016 by Steve Brawner Communications, Inc.

This year’s U.S. Senate campaign would seem to fit neatly into a junior high textbook description of how the country’s two-plus party system operates. The incumbent, Sen. John Boozman, is a well-liked, mild-mannered Republican. He’s older and wiser and not one to rock the boat, which is a good or bad thing, depending on a voter’s perspective. He’s being challenged by a young, energetic Democrat, Conner Eldridge, who hasn’t previously run for elective office and has things he wants to do. Adding to the interest is the Libertarian candidate, Frank Gilbert, who makes an eloquent case for views not held by the majority of voters.

It’s not hard to imagine how that junior high textbook would describe such a campaign: as a contest of ideas where the candidates discuss the issues and the voters choose the best one.

Instead, it’s been the campaign that wasn’t. Most people’s attention, including mine, has been riveted on The Hillary and Donald Show at the top of the ticket. There have been times when I couldn’t take my eyes off that circus even when I wanted to.

Meanwhile, Arkansas is now such a red state that Boozman has been able to rely on his party label and the advantages of incumbency. Plus, maybe voters just think he has done a good enough job. You may not agree with him, but you can’t help but like him. So it’s no surprise that, in a recent Talk Business & Politics/Hendrix College poll, Boozman was leading his two opponents, 52-34-4.

With so much in his favor, Boozman adopted a simple strategy: Ignore Eldridge. Eldridge challenged him to a series of debates, but Boozman refused to take the bait, and, besides, it wouldn’t have made much of a difference. They debated once on AETN, and it didn’t fundamentally alter the race. Trying to break through, or at least get under Boozman’s skin, Eldridge drove a truck through the state with two lecterns to illustrate his charge that Boozman was avoiding him and debated Gilbert several times with an extra lectern supposedly meant for Boozman.

In other words, Boozman has behaved as anyone would behave with a big lead: by playing it safe and running out the clock. Eldridge has done what he could to change the game’s direction, but he never could raise the money to mount a challenge or gain momentum or just get some attention. Gilbert has shared his views with whoever would listen.

The campaign never could be about the issues, so then it became about non-issues. Eldridge has tried to make something of Boozman’s international travels, which would seem to be part of the job of being a senator, and has said Boozman hasn’t spent enough time in the district. He criticized Boozman for refusing to disavow Donald Trump, which wasn’t destined to have much success in a state where more Arkansans say they are voting for Trump than for Boozman. Boozman’s campaign, when it hasn’t pretended Eldridge doesn’t exist, ripped page one out of the GOP playbook and tied Eldridge to President Obama, who appointed Eldridge as a U.S. attorney. The issue has not been whether Eldridge had served well but that he had served, period.

Boozman is going to win. Regardless, a U.S. Senate campaign, especially one with three textbook candidates, ought to be a bigger deal to all of us than this, even when The Hillary and Donald Show is on.

A senator is an important official. There are only 100 of them, each state gets only two, they serve six years, and they aren’t term-limited. Sen. Dale Bumpers was in office 24 years – three times longer than any president except President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. And senators make important decisions, including ratifying treaties and confirming Supreme Court justices, according to the textbooks. A single senator taking advantage of the rules can just about grind Congress to a halt. But for all the reasons listed above, this year’s race just hasn’t reflected that importance.

The next Senate campaign in Arkansas is scheduled for 2020 – another presidential election year. It’s hard to imagine that one being as crazy as this one, but then, it was hard to imagine this one. Maybe that Senate race will get more attention. Sen. Tom Cotton, who arouses passion on both sides, will be on the ballot then – at least as a Senate candidate, and maybe more.

Related: How Conner Eldridge thinks he can win.
A husband first, and then a candidate.

Where your vote really counts this year

Hand with ballot and boxBy Steve Brawner
© 2016 by Steve Brawner Communications, Inc.

This year’s big races in Arkansas were decided long ago, when incumbents decided to run for re-election and when candidates decided which letter – “R,” “D” or something else – would be beside their name. Statewide, the “Rs” have it.

So even though you’re probably focusing most of your attention on the presidential race, your votes will count the most in local races and in the four ballot initiatives remaining on the ballot.

Those initiatives are where America stops being a republic governed by elected leaders and instead becomes a direct democracy – where you, Mr. and Mrs. Responsible Citizen, decide the law of the land.

Issue 1 is a constitutional amendment extending the terms of nine county officials – county judge, sheriff, etc., but not justice of the peace – from two years to four years. Secondarily, it would prevent county officers from being appointed or elected to another civil or elected office (school board, for example) while serving their terms; take their names off the ballot if they don’t have an opponent; and define the previously undefined “infamous crime” that warrants their removal from office.

Passage of the amendment would give elected officials more time to settle into their offices and govern instead of having to return to the campaign trail so soon after being elected. If you think that’s a good thing, vote yes. If not, vote no.

Issue 2 would allow the governor to maintain his or her powers when leaving the state. Under the Constitution, if Gov. Asa Hutchinson drives into Memphis or crosses the border separating Texarkana, Ark., and Texarkana, Tex., Lt. Gov. Tim Griffin becomes not just the acting governor but the actual governor. If Griffin is also out of state, then the Senate president pro tempore, Sen. Jonathan Dismang, R-Searcy, becomes the actual governor. Issue 2 would end that practice.

The pros? Governors travel a lot for legitimate reasons. Hutchinson, in fact, is in China this week meeting with business leaders he hopes will invest in Arkansas, and with government officials to promote Arkansas agriculture exports. In the past, replacement governors have taken advantage of their moment in the sun to sign a bill the governor didn’t like, or let people out of jail, or temporarily fire the governor’s chief of staff. On the con side, if the governor is out of state during an emergency – as occurred on Sept. 11, 2001 – current law ensures Arkansas still has a governor at home.

Issue 3 would allow the state to issue bonds for economic development projects in unlimited amounts. Currently, those bonds must equal no more than 5 percent of state general revenues. That provision would let the state go into more debt in order to attract a really big employer, such as an auto plant. The amendment also would allow cities and counties to provide economic development money to private entities, such as the local Chamber of Commerce. It also would let cities and counties sell bonds to private individuals rather than through a public sale.

Why vote yes? Because Arkansas is still a poor state, and it competes with other states that also use taxpayer funds to attract employers and spur economic development. Vote no if you’re concerned about how those funds are used, who benefits, and how much debt the state would incur.

The other initiative has attracted the most attention. Issue 6 is the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Amendment, which would legalize medical marijuana through a constitutional amendment. It would allow marijuana to be distributed through for-profit dispensaries and lists medical conditions that would qualify.

If you want more information, the Cooperative Extension Service has an excellent, unbiased voter guide at its website, www.uaex.edu. I used it for this column.

State Republican leaders stumped by Trump

By Steve Brawner
© 2016 by Steve Brawner Communications, Inc.

I tried to write about something besides the presidential campaign, and just can’t. I apologize. I’ve covered other things this past week but can’t look away from this train wreck, even when I want to.

Arkansas’ top Republican elected officials probably feel the same way.

After Donald Trump’s 2005 recordings were made public, a number of them made their strongest statements yet against the candidate whom none of them wanted to be the nominee. But so far, they have not joined others across the country who withdrew their support, including both senators from the states of Alaska, Nebraska and Arizona, including Sen. John McCain. Speaker of the House Paul Ryan has all but disowned Trump.

Well, Rep. Bruce Westerman did say after the recordings that he would support letting the party’s vice presidential nominee, Gov. Mike Pence, take the top spot. However, on Monday, he told reporters that Trump did OK in Sunday’s debate and still has his support.

Sen. Tom Cotton made a strong statement while in the middle of a four-day trip to Iowa, where his appearances included the main address at the big-deal Reagan Dinner in Des Moines. Yes, that’s the same Iowa that hosts the nation’s first presidential caucus three-and-a-half years from now, so Cotton may be spending a lot more time there soon. According to his prepared remarks, Cotton said Trump had to ask for forgiveness in the debate and make the case that he was better than Hillary Clinton. If not, he should step aside. After the debate, Cotton said Trump had successfully made that case, but it’s a safe bet he won’t be walking door to door on Trump’s behalf. He’s got other doors to knock.

Sen. John Boozman released a statement saying that if anyone ever spoke about his wife, daughters or granddaughters the way Trump had spoken about women in that video, “they would be shopping for a new set of teeth.” He deplored the state of the campaign but did not rescind his previous support of Trump.

Gov. Asa Hutchinson said Trump’s conduct in 2005 was “reprehensible and cannot be justified” but he said the election should be about national security, the economy and the Supreme Court. Asked if still supports Trump, Hutchinson said his statement stood as it was, which means yes.

The rest of Arkansas’ Republican leadership released similar statements condemning Trump’s remarks but not calling for him to leave the race. Those included Rep. Rick Crawford, Rep. French Hill, Rep. Steve Womack, Lt. Gov. Tim Griffin and Attorney General Leslie Rutledge, who had begun making national TV appearances on Trump’s behalf before the recordings were released.

The highest profile state Republican to call on Trump to withdraw was the Speaker of the Arkansas House of Representatives, Jeremy Gillam, who said in a statement, ”Although I have not been a supporter of Mr. Trump in the past, I have remained hopeful that he would give me a reason to vote for my party’s nominee. I no longer have that hope. I believe he should withdraw from the race immediately.”

Gillam is a huge “Star Wars” fan, which may not be a coincidence. The saga’s most important characters are imperfect individuals who overcome their personal flaws and eventually triumph in a galactic confrontation of good versus evil. Even the villain, Darth Vader, becomes the hero in the end. But some characters never redeem themselves and never earn the audience’s support.

This presidential election has been a tough one for many in the state party’s leadership. None of them endorsed Trump initially. Most first supported Gov. Mike Huckabee, who never had any traction, and then many transferred their support to Sen. Marco Rubio, who was steamrolled by the Trump juggernaut. Trump’s lifestyle, personality, and personal history aren’t good fits for them, nor are his policies. He’s not really a conservative, and they are.

But they made the rational calculation that Trump was their party’s nominee, he’s better than the alternative, and he has the support of a lot of Republican primary voters. He will win Arkansas in November, big.

It looks like he will lose the election, though. If that happens, Republican elected officials will try to return to the days of nominating candidates they can fully support, like Cotton or Pence or Ryan. We’ll see if Republican primary voters will let them.

Related: Trump played checkers and they played chess – in a checkers year.