Leading State Constitutional Scholars Will Discuss the State Con-Con Referendums on the Nov. 2 ballots in MD, MI, MT, and IA
WASHINGTON, Oct. 21 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is being released by iSolon.org:
What: Forum on the four state con-con referendums on the Nov. 2 ballot
When: 3:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m., Friday, October 22nd, 2010
Where: Lisagor Room, National Press Club, 529 14th Street NW, Washington, D.C.
Topic: Is State Con-Con Phobia Justified?
On November 2, 2010, four states (Maryland, Michigan, Montana, and Iowa) have referendums on the ballot asking voters whether they want to convene a state constitutional convention (con-con). Never in U.S. history has this question been on the ballot in so many states at once.
The last three decades have been the most uneventful period in U.S. history for state con-cons. There have been 233 in U.S. history but only three since 1980. As a result, the vast majority of living Americans, including democratic reformers and reporters, haven't witnessed a con-con in their adult life. This popular ignorance has made it easy for misinformation about con-cons to spread, especially during the days preceding a con-con election when there is virtually no accountability for what is said.
At this event, prominent state constitutional scholars will describe the history and democratic rationale of the state con-con process, assess the quality of popular reporting on state con-cons during recent electoral cycles, and answer reporters' questions concerning the November 2 con-con ballot referendums.
Panelists
John Woodcock
Adjunct Professor of Political Science, Central Connecticut State University
Former democratic state representative, Connecticut
Former Vice-Chair, 2008 Connecticut con-con yes campaign
Dan Friedman
Assistant Attorney General, Maryland
General Counsel, Maryland General Assembly
Author, "Magnificent Failure Revisited: Modern Maryland Constitutional Law from
1967 to 1998"
Alan Tarr
Professor, Rutgers University-Camden
Director, Center for State Constitutional Studies
Co-editor, State Constitutions for the Twenty-First Century: The Politics of State
Constitutional Reform
Robert Williams
Professor, Rutgers University-Camden
Associate Director, Center for State Constitutional Studies
Co-editor, State Constitutions for the Twenty-First Century
John Dinan
Associate Professor, Wake Forest University
Author, The American State Constitutional Tradition
Author, "The Political Dynamics of Mandatory State Constitutional Convention
Referendums"
Moderator
J.H. Snider, President, iSolon.org
Background Article
J.H. Snider and Alan Tarr, A Historic Year for State Con-Cons, Huffington Post, October 12, 2010. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jh-snider/a-historic-year-for-state_b_760455.html
RSVP for this event at [email protected].
Media inquiries should be sent to [email protected].
This event will be preceded at 1:00 pm by "Connecting the Dots for Democratic Accountability." See http://www.isolon.org/Events/10-10-22--NationalPressClub--ConnectingTheDotsForDemocraticAccountability.html.
SOURCE iSolon.org
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