Earlier in the week I was sitting here at my desk, working on some code, when there was suddenly a knock on the door. No, it wasn’t Santa Claus, it was something better. I went over the door and asked who it was. The response came back: “this is Mike Gastin and I’m running for city council”. I immediately asked him to hang on a minute while I found a shirt. A minute or so later, I opened the door, and no, it was not Mormons pretending to be running for city Council to try to hand me pamphlets, it was an actual candidate! He introduced himself, and we talked for a bit. We actually ended up talking for 20 or 30 minutes, and I am amazed that he talked to me at all since I realized after he left that I am a month overdue for a haircut and I don’t believe I’ve shaved since August. He told me a little bit about himself, and why he is running, and I asked him some questions – geared to determine if he really was a non-politician as he claimed. Charleston has too many career politicians at the local level, so it was refreshing to find out that he was sincere. We talked a bit more about the issues facing our district, and I even asked him to say one good and one bad thing about all of his opponents and about the candidates for Mayor. He was able to identify good and bad things about each of the candidates, which told me that he would be able to work with a mayor that did not necessarily agree with everything he thought should be done. At one point he mentioned that someone had put me on his list as someone he needed to talk to, which explains why he was knocking on my door on a Wednesday morning at 10 or 11 o’clock, when most people are not home. The person who put me on his list knew I would be home. I was extremely pleased with his knowledge of the critical issues, and after he left, I also did a little research into his résumé. He is certainly not running to get a paycheck. I can’t imagine that he would be doing it to try to start a “political career”. So a local citizen, running for office to try to get a job done. I don’t want to make this sound satirical, but it is almost out of a Jimmy Stewart movie. The question of course is whether he can win over a two term incumbent that I only hear from when he tries to say hello as I walk into the polling place every four years. Constituent services? Not in most city council member’s vocabulary. But I believe it might be in Mr. Gastin’s. I was impressed enough that I actually decided that I am going to vote this November, and I told him that I would spread the word that I had actually met somebody who could answer my questions – and for those of you that don’t know me, most politicians run for the hills when I start asking questions. Now we get to the interesting part: it is a non-partisan race. I did not ask him his party affiliation, and when he thought I was going to ask him he immediately interjected that he wasn’t going to say – that it is a non-partisan race and party labels are not discussed. So, who do I tell? We all know the truth about local politics. Even though it is non-partisan, people in the back rooms of the Republican party, and the Democratic party know who the candidates are. The Greens would as well. I have been out of the libertarian party for over three years now, so I tried to look up who to contact locally. It would be easier to find a Maytag repair man in Alaska. Eventually, I called someone in another part of the state, and was told he believed that the Mises caucus had taken over the local county party, and that all they cared about was mises minutia and trying to figure out how to vote for Trump or RFK Jr. I have no idea if that is true, but that is what my friend thinks is going on. But this is a non-partisan election, as many are. My friend and I talked about a couple of other non-partisan races he knows of in Georgia that he is hoping will succeed. The mayoral race is non-partisan here in Charleston, as is city Council. So there really isn’t anything a minor party could do, other than spread the word that there is at least one candidate worth considering. I am certainly not saying that there are no other candidates to consider, but when I see people running, some with the same last name as their parent that held the seat, I have little doubt that they are just trying to extend political dynasties. And what would a minor party do anyway? Well, they can influence elections. In Charleston county, the sum total of the minor party votes is frequently greater than the difference between the two other party candidates. In other words, support from minor parties and independents is still important. Of course, most minor parties are going to be even more stringent with verifying that a non-partisan candidate passes a purity test before even considering support. That is why they are failing. Rather than find someone you can agree with on three out of five issues, they will only support someone that agrees with them on five out of five. It doesn’t matter what the five are. If they disagree, forget it. The end result is that most non-partisan candidates get treated exactly like Eli Wallach in the final scene of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. In the end, they are left with their hands and feet tied, standing
Category: Non-Partisan Politics
Robert’s, the Political Weapon of Mass Destruction
Let me take you back to the day I was first introduced to the weapon of political destruction, Robert’s Rules of Order. Some 30 years ago, back when I was foolishly trying to affect change within the GOP, I attended one of my first county conventions. I don’t remember exactly what year it was, but it was in the early 1990s. I had been active in politics for a few years, but I had not gotten involved in the actual party infrastructure until recently. The convention, attended by many hundreds of delegates, was a one-day event. It was about the size of an off-presidential year Libertarian national convention. Somehow I ended up sitting in one of the front rows, off to the side near the exit. I had not really had much interaction with formal rules, so I was quite interested in the little cheat sheet that was handed out at the door. The convention progressed, with nominations and seconds, followed by elections and votes with seemingly endless debate of stupid things. Election of a temporary this and that, followed by a permanent this and that. I understand it now, but back then, the process required under South Carolina Election Law seemed very strange. Eventually, it started to wind down, until they got to “resolutions.” Anyone who has attended a Libertarian Party convention knows about resolutions. That is the part of the convention where people stand up and spew out sometimes sane and sometimes insane things to vote on as resolutions. Sometimes they pass, but they are frequently shouted down. As I was sitting in the room, I began to notice that a lot of people appeared to have left. Then it happened. The convention chair, a prominent local politician, who years later became Lieutenant Governor, and with whom I once had a very heated debate over the merits of mustard-based vs vinegar-based barbeque sauce, was gleefully taking a resolution from the floor. It was in support of the Confederate flag and secession. Where the bleep was I sitting? What was this stuff? I mentioned to the person sitting next to me that the room seemed to not have enough people in it. He suggested that I call for a quorum check. I raised my hand. The chair kept going, so the person next to me nudged me and said to shout it out, which I promptly did: quorum call! Everything stopped. Looking stern and solemn, the chair checked the room. He quickly determined that there was not a quorum present and the convention promptly adjourned. This was my first experience in the use of Robert’s as a weapon of political destruction. I received a few upset looks and comments while leaving from some of the supporters of the resolution, but a few others looked relieved that some kid (I was in my early 30s) had done something they were afraid to do. Robert’s is complex. It is huge. But it can be used to defend yourself in a knife attack and might stop a slow bullet if you have it in your jacket pocket covering your heart. Of course, it better be a really loose-fitting jacket to be able to hold that book. Other than that, it is primarily a tool of obstruction. Robert’s can be used to run effective meetings and conventions. But it can also be used at those events to obstruct and interfere with the process. I have seen it used at LNC meetings to delay and obstruct motions or prevent people from speaking by causing delays until time expires and not everyone gets to speak. Endless dilatory amendments that have to be discussed before they can be voted down. People losing track of what the actual motion is because it has been amended so many times. Secretaries frustrated by trying to track who has spoken and what the motion currently is being voted on. But I have also used it and seen others use it to run effective and efficient meetings. It is also used quite frequently at the microphone at national conventions to waste everyone’s time. We all know who these people are. Another former Libertarian Party member recently commented that he and others in his state party were prevented from actually accomplishing anything through the use of Robert’s. When I called it a weapon of mass destruction, he likened it more to a weapon of pipe obstruction. He said it packs the pipe with bull [deleted] so nothing can move through the pipe. Obviously, I am not alone in my opinion of Robert’s. Something better needs to be used. Rules of Order are needed, otherwise you simply have chaos. But they need to be simpler and easier to manage and understand. I understand Robert’s. I studied enough to be able to pass the test. It was recommended a number of times that I take it. I somehow avoided it and I’m glad that I did. In my opinion, and in the opinion of quite a number of others, a Classical Liberal party needs to find something better to use. Better rules of order, and better ByLaws. In my last commentary, I mentioned the embarrassment of South Carolina being the home of people like Strom Thurmond, Lindsey Graham and Tim Scott. I have just learned it was also the birthplace of Henry Martyn Robert. Yup. The guy who wrote Robert’s. Can it get worse?