I’m not asking for anyone’s opinions of what the Reform Party stands for (though we’ll undoubtedly get a few opinions)- just for your gut feeling. If and when Ross Perot tires of running for President, does the Reform Party have a future?
My hunch is, no! (Certainly not if Lowell Weicker is the best candidate Jesse VEntura can think of!). Opinions?
Given its founding by Ross “They wanna disrupt my daughter’s wedding with doctored lesbian photos” Perot, and scored its only real win via a former pro wrestler, the odds seem dim. Frankly, I’d be impressed if they got Lowell Weiker (although simultaneously disappointed in Weiker), notwithstanding that he is an egomaniacal blowhard. Not that it’d still be likely to go far.
The Reform Party and Preston Manning are doing quite well, thanks - after all, he’s Leader of Her Majesty’s Opposition in Parliament, and he’s finally moved into Stornoway. Of course, he’s got that “United Alternative” thing going, and maybe the beginning of a caucus revolt…
Oh, wait - you meant the U.S. Reform Party, not the Reform Party of Canada - my mistake - never mind…
If the Reform Party is to move on, they need to actually figure out what they stand for – other than just being an alternative to the Dems and Repubs. Right now, you have people in the party suggesting far-right conservatives for president while others suggest far-left liberals – doesn’t sound like they are all together.
Before, it was easy to know what they stood for: Perot’s ego. Now that he’s agreed to bow out, there are a number of state groups all milling about somewhat aimlessly.
Does the Reform Party have a future? Probably not, as they seem to be as organized as kindergartners. However, there are two points out of H. Ross’s speech in Livonia, MI that make sense to me:
This making sense, it will never work.
The problem with the exit polling thing is that it blatantly violates free speech.
Also, even if we were to find a way around the First Amendment and ban exit polling, there are still the months and months of pre-vote polling that go on. Often, the media has virtually declared a winner a week or more before the election.
Shirley Ujest:
Is it really that tough for people to get to their local polling places on Tuesday? The polls are open (at least in New York) well before and after standard working hours.
And also, some of us might have trouble with a Saturday vote…
As for the Reform Party in general: I think they’ll have a future only if they run candidates for the legislative as well as executive positions. As long as they appear only to be gunning for the top spot, and as long as they have no one to focus on local issues (who was it that said something like “All politics is local”?) I don’t think they’ll be taken seriously enough by voters.
Chaim Mattis Keller
ckeller@schicktech.com
“Sherlock Holmes once said that once you have eliminated the
impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be
the answer. I, however, do not like to eliminate the impossible.
The impossible often has a kind of integrity to it that the merely improbable lacks.”
– Douglas Adams’s Dirk Gently, Holistic Detective
I recall hearing on NPR that Bill Bradley (sp?) considered running on the reform platform at one point. Also, the party seems to have done fairly well for itself in past elections; really, it is the only 3rd party to do well. So, though I think it definitely has some work to do, I think we’ll be seeing more of it.
ellis
Someone said:
Before I moved to sticksville, It would be a two hour minimum wait after work to vote, regardless if it were the Presidential stuff or not. Going before work, when the polls opened was only a half hour wait. A lunch time vote was about 15 minutes, but not everyone lived 4 miles from work. After my first voting experience, I took a book and a small cane chair and a snack.
Now, living in the sticks, I can tell you the longest I have waited is about 15 minutes and that was after work. Before work it was walk in/ walk out situation. I don’t know how the folks in big big cities can handle the snaking lines.
As for no exit polls as they are a violation of free speech, I never thought of it that way.
I believe the reference was to banning exit polls being a violation of free speech. Could be wrong, though. =)
Powers
Powers, you are correct. Telling a news organization that they are not allowed to publish the results of an exit poll is prior restraint, and would be a violation of free speech.
As for changing the day of voting, Chaim made a good point about Saturday not being a viable day for everybody. In response to Shirley’s concerns, I’d say they need more voting booths, not a change in day.
Ellis said:
Um, how “well” has it done? Do they have any Congressmen? No. They have one governor (who probably would have won no matter what label he applied to himself, as long as it wasn’t Democrat or Republican). Maybe a few local folks, but I can’t be sure. Do you have any specifics?
I’m not sure if this is the case everywhere, but around here it’s pretty much designed so that the places we go to vote are within walking distance. Combine that with non-electronic voting, and it should be okay. Am I forgetting something?
David:
In addition to which, Saturday is the sabbath for some folk. And if I’m not mistaken, for those who are orthodox Jews voting would probably be considered verboten. Chaim can, and no doubt will, point out to me if I am inaccurate.
Last time I checked, nobody was using Tuesday as the sabbath.
Waste
Flick Lives!
[[Does the Reform Party have a future? Probably not, as they seem to be as organized as kindergartners. However, there are two points out of H. Ross’s speech in Livonia, MI that make sense to me:
As others have noted, I don’t think Tuesday elections has prevented many people from voting if they actually wanted to, and certainly not any more than Saturday elections allow.
[[2) No exit polls until Hawaiin voting is done.
This making sense, it will never work.]]
Apart from the reality that, as David observed, banning exit polls is an infringement on free speech, I am at a loss to imagine what good such a ban would do. Is there some public benefit for people in Hawaii to vote in ignorance?
The logic behind it is usually that, as West Coasters and Hawaii residents start hearing the results of polls from the Eastern states, it it looks fairly definitive, they may not bother to vote at all. I don’t know if there is any truth to the hypothesis.
News organizations could voluntarily run a different feed to their Western stations, thereby avoiding the restraint problem, but that ain’t gonna happen.
Since several people have discussed the desirability/feasability of holding elections on Saturdays, I should point otu that, here in Texas, “absentee” balloting has been expanded drastically. For all practical purposes, ANYONE in Texas can vote at appointed polling places (generally malls and supermarkets) for almost a full month before any election. I have done this for years, as I find it a lot more convenient.
However, while this system has been a convenience for ME< it has had absolutely ZERO effect in increasing voter turnout in TExas. In the last Austin city elections, there was a turnout somewhere between 9 and 10%.
I have no problem with making it easier for people to register to vote, or with making it easier for people to vote. But let’s not kid ourselves: it is already VERY easy to register AND to vote. It’s never been easier. So, if 90% of voters choose to stay home, it is NOT because voting is too difficult. They may be cynical, they may be lazy, they may be apathetic, or (for a rare optimistic interpretation), they may figure their lives are okay, and likely to remain okay no matter who’s elected.
So, by all means, make it easier to vote- that makes MY life easier. But it won’t encourage non-voters to participate.
{{[[Apart from the reality that, as David observed, banning exit polls is an infringement on
free speech, I am at a loss to imagine what good such a ban would do. Is there some
public benefit for people in Hawaii to vote in ignorance?]]
The logic behind it is usually that, as West Coasters and Hawaii residents start hearing the results of polls from the Eastern states, it it looks fairly definitive, they may not bother to vote at all. I don’t know if there is any truth to the hypothesis.}} PLD
Eh – everone knows (or should) that their single vote doesn’t mean anything in itself.
The reform party is a collection of far left and far right wackos in search of a party to join. The only thing the reform party can accomplish in the upcoming presidential election is to split the GOP enough to assure a democratic vicoty in the WH and both houses. Works for me.
First of all, since politics has never before interested me, I have NO IDEA what I’m talking about. That said, I hope and pray that the Reform Party is able to get it’s collective shit together and get a few people into office. Because of a CNN interview of Gov. Ventura, I am interested in learning more about politics and our government. I’ve read articles and viewed interviews and speeches by other politicians, but never was I swayed into giving a shit about any of it. I found Ventura to be articulate, persuasive, provocative and rather brilliant and quick-witted. If this is the general atmosphere within the Reform Party, I’m all about it.
Veni, Vidi, Visa … I came, I saw, I bought.
In something akin to astorian’s point, why not have polls open for two days straight? This way, Hawaiians and left-coasters could vote without knowing the outcome of voting on the east coast. Just a thought, and of course there would still be a period of time when some polls were closed and others still open, but at least the opportunity would be there to vote before knowing the (probable) outcome.