We are currently watching the implosion of the RepubliCONS at a national level as the Tea Party factions tears the party apart.
One thing any group needs is cohesion and cooperation among its members.
Another thing any group needs is a purpose and mission that is coherent and consistent.
Those things are not happening for the RepubliCONS at the national level and ALEC may be beginning to experience the same thing.
This entry is just one example - other examples include ALEC members who are at each others throats - like Cantor and Boehner - - - or Enzi and Cheney - - there's more, lots more.
But it isn't just one on one battles that erupting inside ALEC - there may be the start of a mission / purpose backlash against ALEC by its own members, as ALEC repeatedly vacillates on what it's public mission will really be - flip-flopping on a regular basis, on which of the ALEC pushed legislation it supports or no longer supports, based on the tone of the press. Mixed messages to members does not build cohesion or cooperation.
One example - ALECs
Equal State’s Enfranchisement Act,
to eviscerate the 17th Amendment.
November 24, 2013
The conservative business group ALEC, meanwhile, also wants
to undermine the 17th Amendment through what it calls the "Equal State's
Enfranchisement Act:"
In an agenda for a
December meeting posted on ALEC’s website, one of the items up for review is
language for a bill, called the Equal State’s Enfranchisement Act, that would allow state
legislatures to add a candidate’s name to the ballot for a U.S. senate seat, along with the
names of those nominated by voters.
And there was no announcement prior to the meeting that ALEC
had removed this vile legislation from its agenda.
ALEC published it as an agenda item - it was worth time at an ALEC meeting to introduce this legislation an discuss this legislation.
November 26, 2013
And ALEC didn't remove it from the agenda – the internal discussions went ahead as planned with
the TaskForce Director stating:
“Actually, the
people on my task force that support it see it more as a way to preserve the
good parts of the 17th Amendment,” Jones said. “Because the reason that the
17th Amendment came into being, there were states that weren’t being
represented with senators, because state legislatures weren’t sending in their
nominees. So it’s a way to preserve that, while at the same time giving state
legislatures a voice in the process, which the constitutional founders
originally thought they should have. [The] state legislatures have been cut out
of that process, unlike what the founders originally intended. So it’s … sort
of a compromise measure, where you preserve the positive aspects of the 17th
Amendment, while having the state legislatures have the role that the
Constitution originally intended.”
ALEC published it
and
ALEC discussed it in detail before the December meeting in Washington DC
and
ALEC included it in the December agenda as a legitimate item for ALEC member discussion.
But
wait a minute
ALEC is like Minnesota
weather – just give it a minute and everything can and will change.
It just takes a minute before the ALEC home office pulls the
rug out from under the compliant ALEC legislators.
January 19, 2014
"It was not adopted. It does not exist," he said.
"... We're a volunteer-led, volunteer-driven organization. When the
volunteers say this isn't the way we're going ... it gets shot down, and it
did."
He said just because there is draft legislation doesn't mean
ALEC supports it.
Before the December meeting, he said a liberal news source
saw that one piece of draft policy was about the U.S. Constitution's 17th
Amendment, which established the direct election of United States senators. Before it
was adopted in 1913, senators were elected by the state legislatures.
Meierling said the draft proposal was introduced by an ALEC
member.
And that member could have been ALECer Frank Niceley.
And if it was Niceley, the bill he brought to ALEC was crap - ALEC knew it was crap and they had their lawyers re-write it for the December meeting.
Cause you see - the bill proposed at the ALEC meeting looks nothing like the amateur bill written by Niceley.
"We're a volunteer-led, volunteer-driven organization,
and if a legislator wants to have a discussion about something, they make that
proposal and then the discussion takes place," he said. "The reality
is that was a draft working document. We had our meeting, and it was not
advanced out of committee. After it wasn't advanced out of committee, the board
also said any resolution on the 17th Amendment has to do with elections, and we
don't do elections."
"we don't do elections."
"we don't do elections."
But he said that didn't stop liberal news sources and blogs
from saying that ALEC wants to get rid of the 17th Amendment.
ALEC published it
and
ALEC discussed it in detail before the December meeting in Washington DC.
and
ALEC included it in the December agenda as a legitimate item for ALEC member discussion
and
ALEC discussed it at the December ALEC meeting
and
ALEC powers that be voted no at the December meeting
And it didn’t stop there.
01/23/2014
ALEC's International Relations Task Force and Federal
Relations Working Group endorsed the "Equal
State's Enfranchisement Act" in
December, at the group's policy summit in Washington,
D.C.
But ALEC spokeswoman Molly Fuhs said this week that
ultimately, the policy was not adopted.
"The ALEC Board of Legislators determined the model
policy not germane to ALEC's mission of free markets, limited government and
federalism," she said. "ALEC does not work on issues related to
campaigns or elections, and therefore this model policy was outside of ALEC's
scope."
"ALEC does not work on issues related to campaigns or
elections,
"ALEC does not work on issues related to campaigns or
elections,
ALEC published it
and
ALEC discussed it in detail before the December meeting in Washington DC.
and
ALEC included it in the December agenda as a legitimate item for ALEC member discussion
and
ALEC discussed it at the December ALEC meeting
and
ALEC powers that be voted no at the December meeting
and
ALEC PR repeated - twice - in the month following the meeting that the ALEC powers that be voted no at the December meeting
BUT -
February 05, 2014
A number of Republican politicians and are calling for
repeal of the 17th Amendment. Ratified in 1913, it gave voters the power to
elect U.S.
senators directly.
Before that, senators were generally selected by state
legislatures. Returning that authority to the states would give them much more
sway in Washington,
restoring their role as a check on federal expansion, repeal supporters say.
Enter ALECer Frank Nicely
Niceley introduced a much rougher version of the ALEC bill in Tennessee earlier in 2013.
It's a crappy bill - something that real part-time state legislator would write.
It's a crappy bill - nothing like the refined ALEC copy/paste legislation introduced at the December ALEC meeting.
Indeed, the lineage of the 17th Amendment is something its
critics hold against it. Frank Niceley, a Republican state senator in Tennessee, says 1913 was "an unlucky year for
Americans," because it ushered in not only direct election of U.S. senators
but the Federal Reserve and the income tax.
Niceley expects a vote next month on his bill to allow his
state's Legislature to select the nominees of both major parties.
Now just a reminder from above:
ALEC Version
Equal
State’s Enfranchisement
Act, that would allow state legislatures to add a candidate’s name to the ballot
Niceley Version
bill to allow his state's Legislature to select the nominees
of both major parties
but his bill is much more dangerous that ALEC's version and based on what I have found - he has made no attempt to refine/amend his bill.
Coincidence?
Doubt it.
ALEC states:
“we don't do elections."
"ALEC does not work on issues related to campaigns or
elections,
But IF that is true:
WHY did-
ALEC published it
and
ALEC discussed it in detail before the December meeting in Washington DC.
and
ALEC included it in the December agenda as a legitimate item for ALEC member discussion
and
ALEC discussed it at that meeting
and
ALEC powers that be voted no at the December meeting
and
ALEC repeated - twice - in the month following the meeting
that the ALEC powers that be voted no at the December meeting
It's actions don't support what ALEC states:
“we don't do elections."
"ALEC does not work on issues related to campaigns or
elections,
And yet a rogue ALEC member will continue to push his version of this vile legislation - becausehecan
Vile legislation in Tennessee that will not be an promotable success - it will fail.
The extremist ultraconservative American Legislative
Exchange Council is confused and has lost control of its purpose and mission.
