“CAUCUS - SHMAUCUS”

Over the years, I have really tried to pay attention to the mechanisms that make our style of democracy work. I have learned some things about the process. I have learned to appreciate some other things about the process. One thing, however, that still baffles me is the absurdity of the State Caucus mechanism during a Presidential Election year.

As far as I can discern, this process does nothing; means nothing; and, is, therefore, useless to the overall election of Party Delegates who, in turn, decide who their Presidential candidate will be. Eleven States and two Territories are currently entertain a non-committal system of voicing their electorate’s preferences in the corner of a neighbor’s living room. I understand and appreciate that the fifty States and our Colonial Territories have a need to flex their “individuality” when it comes to their identity. There are many ways States and Territories can do this; making it a useless part of an election cycle is not one of those times. I feel strongly that, in a Presidential election year, there should be certain uniformity to the Primary process and the General Election; do what you want with State and local politics, but the National forum should be uniform. 

[Note: This holds for the Presidential candidates and their election, only. The States and Territories have control over their Federal and Local Representation.; as it should be]

Below are some basic numbers to illustrate just how useless this Caucus thing is.

THE STATES WHICH USE THE CAUCUS SYSTEM INCLUDE

State / Territory	Population
Alaska	0.73 million
Colorado	5.3 million
Florida	19.8 million
Hawaii	1.4 million
Idaho	3 million
Iowa	1.6 million
Kansas	2.9 million [1]
Maine	1.3 million
Minnesota	5.4 million
Nevada	3 million
North Dakota	0.73 million [1]
Washington	7 million
Wyoming	0.5 million [1]
American Samoa	0.05 million
US Virgin Islands 0.05 million	0.05 million

^[1] The oil and gas industry has undoubtedly increased these population figures, but probably   not enough to make a remarkable difference in their percentage of the total population

THE CAUCUS STATES/TERRITORIES AS A % OF THE U.S. POPULATION

US Population	322 million
Caucus States/Territories Population	52.85 million
% of U.S. Population	16.5 %

Why do so few insist on voicing a non-committal preference when the rest of the Country is actually casting votes and going “on record” as to whom they prefer. Let it be that there is a Caucus process in the final decision making process at the Party’s National Conventions.

There are certain special interest Caucuses in the Congress. And, that’s alright; they serve a purpose in those venues. When we vote in any regularly scheduled National, State, or Local election there is no Caucus procedure. So, why do some of us insist on the Caucus process in a Primary situation? It’s stupid and useless in a Primary; get rid of it, please!

 I have some other basic questions about our “election” process, as well. And, believe me, I need some help here.

[These questions are predicated on my belief that our Primary and General Election time span is simply too long. The Primary/Caucus procedure starts on February 1 and continues until the National Conventions in August. This is a full 6 ½ months before the Conventions and 9 months prior to Election Day in November. Why?]

Questions:

1) Why are early Caucus States viewed as a make/break proposition for     candidates?

Ø They logically and rationally do not.

2) Why can’t the entire Delegate assignment procedure be accomplished just prior to the National Conventions?

Ø Two weeks prior would do just fine.

3) Why is our Presidential Election year campaign process a 1 ½-             yearlong proposition? ($$$money$$$)

Ø Three months is a reasonable period; given our twenty-four hour News Cycle.

4) Presidents and Governors have term limits. Why is any other politician different? ($$$money$$$)

Ø They are in business to serve “We The People”. We don’t need career Politicians. They have a very short shelf-life.

5) Could there somehow be an exponential increase in voter                   participation if the campaign season was shortened to three months?

Ø I feel there would be less apathy and a lot more enthusiasm with the voting public.

6)  Could something in the neighborhood of three months create a             “snowball/domino” effect that would see less influence from                   campaign contribution money?

Ø Simple legislation that says, “No!” would probably be enough to snuff out the obscene amounts of money in the campaign cycle.

7)   How do you force the imposition of term limits for every elected         official in the nation; Federal, State, and Local?

Ø Keep it simple, and vote!

POLITICS REALLY IS LOCAL

All this time, I’ve been looking at National politics, and I have become absolutely disgusted with what we pass off as politicians. It wasn’t always so. I started out as a Republican in the early 1970’s and was a member of

the Huntington Town Republican Party. The Nixon fiasco drove me away from politics completely until the late 1980’s. I remained a registered Republican until 1990 when I made the switch to the Independent Party, after experiencing Reagan and Bush, Sr.  As an Independent, I voted for Clinton, and that was the start of my migration over to the Democratic Party, where I am today. Because of recent governmental developments I find myself, once again, in search of a relevant political affiliation that will platform policy that is financially sound and socially responsible, and, above all, ethical.

The last three and a half years of the idiocy we call Washington, DC, has gone so far as to make me question whether this is really the Country I gave up three years of my life to fight for. When I see what is happening to our politics and our economy, there are many emotions rattling around in my brain; sadness, embarrassment, frustration, and disgust. I have become so disgusted, in fact, that I have turned my attention solely to local politics. For years I have simply voted the “party line” when it came to local election cycles. I occasionally voted across Party lines in an attempt to make my vote count, but, for the most part, I ignored what was going on right under my nose.

We have an off-year election coming up in Huntington, New York, and it turns out that it’s going to be a very important election that will set our Town’s course for quite a while. Of note, the Town Supervisor (Mayor), two Town Council seats, and the Highway Superintendent positions are up for grabs. Now, as disgusted with National politics as I am, I know there is little I can do on that front as compared to what I might be able to accomplish on the local front. Some very interesting things happened on the way to this election. As a Democratic Committee member, I can’t speak on the Republican’s trials and tribulations, but I can certainly speak on the mess my side produced. It all started with a good friend of mine deciding at the beginning of this year that he would be an excellent candidate for the Highway Superintendent position. He went about polling his possibilities and concluded that he would run. As a friend, and fellow Democrat, I was asked to pitch in, and did so willingly. Our little team was able to gather enough petition signatures to place his name in consideration. It all seemed to be going fairly smoothly. There were actually three gentlemen running for this one spot in the Democratic Party; my friend, the current Parks Department director, and the incumbent. A nominating meeting was set and that’s when all the fun began. Normal procedure dictates that you take a committee vote to determine who the candidate will be, and vote we did. My friend won the first and second round, but failed to get the required 50% + 1 more vote (for a simple majority). Party by-laws state clearly that we are to vote, and re-vote, until one of the candidates does reach the 50% (+1) level. Concurrently, we were voting for three of our candidates to fill Town Council seats up for grabs this year. There were also originally four candidates involved in the Town Council race, and the initial two votes in that category did not produce a clear winner, either. After only two rounds of voting for each category, all discussion and the meeting were brought to an abrupt halt. We were informed that it was past some people’s bed time and it would be best to set a later date and continue the voting at that time. Just before we adjourned for the evening, one of the candidates for Town Council withdrew his name from list; leaving three candidates for the spot.

"Democrats set primary for top highway job"

"The three contenders seeking the Democratic nomination for Huntington highway superintendent will compete in a primary in September, after the party could not decide on a nominee at its convention Thursday night. Two separate votes failed to produce a majority for any of the candidates -- longtime incumbent William Naughton and challengers Kevin Orelli, a business owner, and town parks Chief Don McKay."

"In the first round of balloting, Orelli received 13,813 votes in a weighted system, McKay had 10,858 and Naughton 4,585.5. The second time around, Orelli received 13,330 to McKay's 9,434. Naughton got 5,020. At that point, the party declared a deadlock -- something Democratic chairwoman Mary Collins said she could not recall happening in her 30... read more »"         [ http://huntingtondems.com/content/democrats-set-primary-top-highway-job ]

The alarm bells started going off, triggering my more than healthy cynicism of all things politic. When you fail to pick a candidate in committee, you are required to have a “runoff” election to include all duly petitioned persons vying for the position in question. But first, you are supposed to give voting in committee a chance to work, and the fact that we were cut short after only two rounds can only be characterized as a breach of democratic process. For an entire week the Party Leaders were silent; then they dropped the bomb. The Town Committee members were notified

by e-mail that the County Chairman was brought into the fray to manipulate the situation under the guise of “cost control” (run-offs cost money). The savings was to be achieved by telling two candidates for the Town Council spot that they were no longer welcome, thus relieving the necessity of a costly run-off in that category. They were forced to resign their candidacy leaving a convenient single person on the ballot.

There was, indeed, a run-off for the three contestants vying for Highway Superintendent which itself produced many shades of gray when you looked behind the scenes. The full weight of the Town’s and County’s resources were thrown behind the incumbent, Naughton, to ensure his reelection, and my friend was torn to shreds in the voting due to the third candidate, Mckay, who was tossed in the ring to foil any competition for his cohort, the incumbent.

NOW, PAY ATTENTION!

Councilman
Eugene Cook

Supervisor
Frank P. Petrone

..............wants his job....................

Councilman
Mark Cuthbertson

.............wants his job............

Councilwoman
Susan A. Berland

.........She's safe, for now!

Tracey Edwards

Councilman
Mark Mayoka

             ........wants his job.........








       

Naughton
Highway Superintendent

Bob Gunther

                .............wants his job.........

THE ‘PUBLICAN’T(S) ARE KNOCKING ONTHEDOOR:

"  Enact Term Limits. 20+ years in the same public office is too long. That is why we support term limits for our Town Supervisor and Council in order to promote a continuous flow of fresh and innovative ideas that will lead Huntington to a more promising future."        " Hold the Line on Taxes. Life on Long Island is expensive and you deserve to keep more of your own money. We are committed to lowering the tax burden so that you and your family can afford to live in the Town of Huntington."       " Increase Transparency in Local Government. A government that is more transparent is more accountable. We will use the town’s website to prominently display a record of every dollar the Town spends because you should know where your money goes. Reduce Government Borrowing. Reducing debt starts with reducing spending. Our Town’s out of control spending, especially in the Town Attorney’s office, has led to the doubling of the town’s debt."            [http://thehuntingtonian.com/2013/05/14/huntington-republicans-pick-town-board-candidates/ ]

It is upon these occurrences that I have been keeping an eye on this local Town election. What I see is the incumbents, Democrats, forcing the process in their favor by trying to scare the crap out of the Town residents (a tactic normally attributed to Republicans) by running ads and holding forums where they no longer talk about their accomplishments in office, but rather spend their time, and our tax dollars, smearing the competition. The demographics of this Town are such that political tactics of fear have an effect on our large, older population. We are also blessed with a sizeable population who would be considered “rich” by any standard. They tend not to vote in local elections, as if it were beneath them. That leaves the young voters and the dwindling blue collar class, who tend to be mostly Democrats. This is going to be a big problem if these folks go to the polls and vote the Party line without first exploring the political landscape of their Town.

"Local Huntington Dems are About to Hit an All Time Low"

                                       "At 1:00 today, there will be a press conference asking Candidate Eugene Cook to step
                                       down from his candidacy as Huntington Town Supervisor. Based on polls, it is likely that  

                                       Councilman Cook will take over as Supervisor after the November elections.  This has 

                                       caused panic among those that are profiting greatly by the Petrone and Cuthbertson."

                                                  [ http://thehuntingtonian.com/category/local-news/page/2/ ]

&

"Former Legislator Jane Devine at a press conference today calling for Gene Cook to withdraw."

[ http://villagetattler.com/page/2/ ]

Since I don’t have the stamina, or the voice, to stand on the old soap box and give oratory to my thoughts and feelings on this election process and the individuals   involved, I have decided the most effective way of countering the overt and covert skullduggery of the Town Democrats and the Town Republicans is to write and post about it, and to come up with a few lawn signs depicting my utter disgust in what I have witnessed. There seems to be a gross lack of democratic process in the Town of Huntington, so I will continue my quest for another Party affiliation that more closely shares my views on the democratic process.

Get the money out of politics 101:

So, you want to get the money out of Politics?

Almost everyone in the Country has a unique take on this subject and some of them will actually contribute to the “Cause”. There is a way of doing this that not too many folks have been talking about.

Imagine, if you would, a campaign season that lasted a maximum of six months. (The Brits do it in six weeks.) How about a Constitutional Amendment that would have all this mud-slinging over and done in one third the time time it takes now? The “big money” might not have enough time to envelope the selection process. Certainly, the Lobbyists would be limited in the time they could spend trying to sow their seeds.

While we’re at it, why don’t we put a low, but reasonable, dollar amount on all elected positions. Form the President down to the local Dog Catcher we could set limits that force the candidates to interact with their constituency instead of hiding behind all the glossy advertisements. With the garrauntee of a short and sweet time frame, the Public would be more inclined to get involved, and some of the current cynisim would flow out of our veins.

Of course, this means overturning the Supreme Court decision on Corporate and Foreign funding of campaigns (the “Citizens United” case). No small feat, you say? This will be accomplished by the “Occupy” movement; after all, look at what they have done to date, and they could use some firm direction to keep the fires burning.

One and a half years is entirely too much time to spend on “getting to know you” Political campaigns. That time frame openly invites money and corruption. It may only take changes in Federal, State, and Local Election Laws. If this is the case, the whole process can be finished over night. We do need the Politicians with the correct body parts to get the job done. I think we either have some already, or can easily find some.

If you don’t have anything nice to say, drag out the politicians.

I guess there is absolutely nothing else happening in the World than the U.S. political plague that we like to call “The Primaries”. This axiom is valid if you simply tune to any “news” outlet on your television, or other e-device. These bastions of worldly intelligence and communicative skills are expecting me to believe that the conflicts in the Middle East have called a time-out? They want me to believe that the financial crisis in Europe is on hold until after the New Hampshire primary. They want all of us to believe that the line-up of candidates for the Carolina primary is more important than folks across this Nation who are sinking into poverty by the tens of thousands.

There is an occasional acknowledgement that this primary voting thing is just a tad too long. I hear very little about the transparency of funding that we, the people, were supposed to experience by now. I do hear a lot about PACs, Super-PACs, and New Improved Super PACs, but I still don’t hear where they get their money. I did the math, and am just wondering what we the people could do with some, or all, of that cash. Me thinks, perhaps, we could climb out of this economic depression we are  involved with. Did I hear someone say “trickle down”?

Note to the media: “Quit it out!”

The people of this Nation don’t really care to hear twenty-three hours of in- depth analysis, only to have that same analysis blown out of the water one hour later by the same people who just analyzed it  This part of our Electoral procedure does seem to be entirely fed, and burped, by our fantastic, omniscient network and cable news organisms. If the “main stream” media would stick to what they usually do best, reporting the news, then none of us would have to endure the vomit inducing assault on our valuable time, and our intelligence.

Next note to the media: “Get a life!”

I am a staunch proponent of our system of governance, when it is practiced correctly. The length, the cost, the useless side-shows, and the inevitable outcome are the elements that actually turn folks off to the democratic process. These are the factors that keep voters from the polls on Election Day. These are the modern day “institutions” that are shoved down our throats for eighteen months every four years.

This is why no man, woman, in their right mind will run for national office. They know they will have wade through a metric ton of horse manure just to get to the starting line. Once at the starting line, they will introduce their family to more than a “pat down” by the TSA.

This is what we get when politics and money collide. Money always wins, and democracy gets flushed down the toilet. I guess, in a perverted way, we all brought this upon ourselves by voting for folks who were ready, willing, and able to stick a knife in our backs once they reached D.C.

Maybe its time to stop being complacent. Maybe its time to stop pleading ignorance. Maybe its time to get our heads out of the sand. Maybe, just maybe, its time to tune in, not drop out, and go to the polls this November with some knowledge and some resolve that casting a vote can make a difference.

No more notes to media: