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DownStreet's
Monthly Straw Poll:
Should Our Reps Vote Their
Consciences? Each month, DownStreet will be
conducting a Straw Poll to get our readers' votes on issues of interest or
importance to Vermont and our local communities. Not only that, but
we'll be forwarding the results to our elected reps. So,
let your voice be heard ... This Month's Straw Poll
Question comes right out of Vermont's debate about the Civil Unions
bill. ... Background: The Civil Unions
debate has been largely focused on the question of whether or not our
elected representatives had any business voting in favor of a proposition
which the majority of the citizens were opposed to. In short, should
elected reps ever cast a vote of conscience, even if it goes against the
wishes of the majority of those they represent? In the
aftermath, especially as the election has drawn nearer, two of our
gubernatorial candidates have positioned themselves around the Civil
Unions legislation pretty explicitly ... while one has tried to simply
avoid political fallout. ... Ruth Dwyer has been
clear about her opposition to Civil Unions, primarily on the basis of the
supposed majority opposition to the measure. Anthony Pollina, on the
other hand, has made it clear all along that he not only supports Civil
Unions as a matter of civil rights, but notes that he considers it a sad
state of affairs when the Supreme Court has to explicitly mandate such
rights for a segment of the Vermont citizenry. And sitting on the
fence is Howard Dean, who has taken to pointing a finger at the State
Supreme Court, much the way he did about Act 60, noting that his own
thoughts were immaterial, since the Supreme Court required of him and the
legislature that something be done. Of course, the idea of
Civil Unions is no longer just a local issue. The issue has also
made it to the national debates, both presidential and vice-presidential,
as anyone who has watched the otherwise uninspiring proceedings has
witnessed. Not only that, but more and more major corporations
around the country have been voluntarily extending benefits to the
partners of gay and lesbian employees in an effort to attract and keep
qualified workers. So the issue is not simply local, nor is it
simply political. Nonetheless, the question here is not
about whether you support Vermont's Civil Unions bill or not.
Rather, the question is whether or not you think an elected official
should ever vote his or her conscience, even if that vote goes against the
majority will of the people represented. When you vote here, we ask
you to keep that clearly in mind. ... This
is not some sort of disguised referendum on Civil
Unions. It is an attempt discover whether or not you believe
there can ever be a justifiable occasion for an elected official to
cast a vote of conscience which, by the definition we are
using here, is a vote which goes against the wishes of the
majority of his or her constituency.
Note:
See subsequent issues for poll results. [Ed.] *******
******* If there is some issue or referendum
you'd like to see DownStreet conduct a Straw Poll on, please let us
know by e-mailing us at politics@downstreetmagazine.com . | 