Whistling Past the Graveyard of Democracy in Alabama

Who's filling the graveyard of Alabama's citizen's rights? The people or the politicians? Both it seems are content to whistle past the graveyard of a people powered democracy.

The recent issue of recall in Vincent, Alabama should be a lesson to all citizens of this state--if you do not breathe life into your issues and demand a more citizen-based democracy, then you can expect more of your rights to cease to exist. If you don't care, they (the legislators) won't care, and they'll be only too accommodating to allow good citizen-based legislation to suffer their demise of choice 'death in committee.'

Such was the end to a *2009 bill submitted by Representative Treadaway-R, 51st district Jefferson County, HB393 that would have proposed an amendment to the Constitution of Alabama for "all elected state, county and municipal officials to be subject to recall." Numerous editorials and press articles publicized Representative Treadaway's intentions and urged the citizens to contact their legislator's in support of the effort.

*(note that some sponsors of HB393 are still in office and should be challenged to resubmit the bill)  

Each and every one of these members who were on the committee at the time should explain why they would not allow Treadaway's bill to progress to a vote:

2009 Constitution and Election Committee
Chair: James Martin--R  (out of office)
Vice Chair: Tommy Sherer --R  (out of office)
Ranking Minority Member: Jay Love--R
Members:
George Bandy--D
Greg Canfield--R
Randy Davis--R (on present committee)
Chad Fincher--R
James Gordon  (out of office)
Ken Guin  (out of office)
Mickey Hammon--R
Barry Mask--R
Joseph Mitchell--D
Mary Moore--D
John Page--D
Patricia Todd--D

Polls taken by some news outlets showed that Alabamians were well into the 90th percentile in favor of having the right to recall elected officials that they view as derelict in their duties, and/or not representative of the needs of the community as a whole. As it stands, citizens have to grin and bear it until the next election cycle, which allows corrupt officials to do a lot of damage by remaining in office for the next four to six years. Alabama history is replete with numerous examples of this, the lawmakers know it, but they continue with the pat answer of "well, just vote them out."

That's a non-answer and a non-starter in fixing the problem.  A better answer and a real solution is to put the recall referendum back up, let it come out of committee and into the land of the living known as a statewide vote.

The politicians know that it will pass overwhelmingly and they have a vested interest in not allowing a vote by the people. The recently elected politicians are making a lot of noise about the importance of state's rights, are citizen's rights less important? 

They must be made to understand that a vote for them was not a mandate to legislate at will unchecked, and labor under the delusion that a yes vote meant 'I agree with everything you think, so forget what I think when you do something I'm against.' That's got a name too, a dictatorship. That's what Vincent has turned into and that's why recall is on the table.

The overwhelming majority of the citizens do not want a rock quarry, City Hall knows it, and that's why they would not allow a vote by the community on the project. If they could afford $2,500+ for a historical marker and $1,800 for Christmas Tree lights, they could afford a vote. Plus, a business stepped forward and offered to pay for the vote.

Vincent's dictatorial leaders played the same game the Alabama legislature does when it sidesteps recall referendums--avoid accountability at all costs.

Elected officials will promise citizens anything to get elected, no secret there, but they must be held accountable when they go back on those deceptive vote-for-me-I'm-for-you promises.

The "sword of recall" hanging over their heads will help ensure responsible government and accountability. 

Initiative and referendum goes hand in hand with a recall provision, but it can be a complicated concept for most voters to grasp. What's important to know about it is two things:

1. It allows a more "direct democracy" rather than one dictated by special interests.

2. The state of Alabama gets a big fat F in citizen based democracy.

We propose that the "new day in Alabama" be the heralding of a willingness to allow this state to be a people are the source of power state, which by the way, is a section of our constitution. But, you have to demand it Alabama.

One other point we made in our last article on this is the conflicting sections of the law of where recall applies (as written) and who it applies to. There is a glaring inequity of the code because it gives one city and one group of people, Dothan, more rights than the thousands of other cities and millions of additional citizens that reside in the state of Alabama.

In our opinion, you cannot discriminate against the majority of cities and municipalities by only giving one a right you don't give to all of the others. That seems to be not only a very poorly written law, but one that could be easily challenged as unconstitutional and wholly discriminatory. 

Laws must be fair when they're enacted to acknowledge and empower citizen's rights, and the one cited as a basis to dismiss the Vincent recall, is not by any stretch of the imagination a fair law. It's arbitrary and capricious at best and a horribly written law at worst. And one of many, that make up the second longest constitution in the world, that's become a sloth-like behemoth of centralized government void of citizen government.

Every year they are in session on Goat Hill they deliver more slashes to the carcass of citizen-based government because they can. Because the citizens of Alabama let them by not mobilizing themselves and demanding better. Those goats on the hill are not going to do anything unless you, the people, demand that they do it in force and with conviction.

They are in session right now so the time is right now.

So, when you get up tomorrow morning, pour yourself a bowl of yellow jackets and get on the phone and get going! Demand that HB393 be re-introduced and let all of Alabama have the right to hold their elected officials accountable to serve their interests, not simply govern in a serve you up manner.

Because if you don't, as the old saying goes, 'it's your funeral.'

Alabama House of Representatives: (334) 242-7600
Alabama State Senate: (334) 242-7800

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