The Initiative Conspiracy Theory - #23 — Sightline Daily

The Initiative Conspiracy Theory - #23

Posted by Eric de Place

08/30/2006 04:50 PM

Untangling the web of deceit behind the Measure 37 copycats.

[Note: This is part of a series.]

I've suggested before that the so-called "property rights" initiatives in the Northwest are not exactly a grassroots movement. They're ordered and funded by reclusive networks of donors and directors, many from back east, who prize their anonymity. That doesn't necessarily mean that they're bad policy. But it deserves, I think, the skeptical arch of an eyebrow.

Enter a fascinating bit of investigative journalism from... Nebraska (free registration req'd). The Omaha World-Herald attempts to unravel the tangle of front groups and psuedonymous funders behind a proposed amendment to Nebraska's constitution. That task leads the reporters to at least 9 states and a welter of organizations, many of whom are also behind the property initiatives in California, Idaho, Montana, and Washington.

You've got to read the article (and accompanying flow chart) to really get the gist of the tangled web. It's a bit like reading Raymond Chandler's The Big Sleep. You'll be scratching your head and re-reading it if you want to make any sense of why a New York developer is heading up three different organizations that dump money another organization that is in turn funding initiatives in places like Nebraska and California.

Why all the secrecy? And shouldn't voters have a right to know who, exactly, is funding ballot initiatives in their states?

Anyway, the World-Herald article is helpful, but it's much too short to do justice to its subject matter. Over at the Boregasm blog you can find more than enough well-research investigation to make your head spin. Personally, I'm about ready to put on a tinfoil hat and start muttering about who really shot JFK.

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Comments

Posted by bill.mitchellwh 09/03/2006 02:53 PM

Eric, Did you catch Ray Ring's lede in High Country News that covered the takings initiatives maneuvering. He knits up the Howard Rich angle clearly with all these front organizations. Seems appropriate to try to raise the profile of these guys. The attorney from Brennan Center said it. We have the right to know who is gaming our state legal systems.

Posted by Arie v. 09/05/2006 01:38 PM

The better news is that I-933 has been hit with a one-two punch:

1. Pro 933 funding has dried up. It was mostly spent on the initiative drive. They had href"http://archives.seattletimes.nwsource.com/cgi-bin/texis.cgi/web/vortex/display?slug=propmoney27m=20060827=933">less than $8,000 in the bank at the end of July.

2. Because they overshot on a right wing flavor of property rights ideology and catered to outside groups they failed to come up with a balanced approach that could garner support from even former allies such as href"http://archives.seattletimes.nwsource.com/cgi-bin/texis.cgi/web/vortex/display?slug=proprights27m=20060827=933">area realtor and builder groups.

There is still sympathy to be had for rural property owners who can be victimized by the rules, regulations and land use politics. However, politically motivated initiatives by outsider groups with no stake in our quality of life is not the answer.

I am finally optimistic on this one.

Posted by Arie v. 09/05/2006 01:44 PM

The better news is that I-933 has been hit with a one-two punch:

1. Pro 933 funding has dried up. It was mostly spent on the initiative drive. They had less than $8,000 in the bank at the end of July.

2. Because they overshot on a right wing flavor of property rights ideology and catered to outside groups they failed to come up with a balanced approach that could garner support from even former allies such as area realtor and builder groups.

There is still sympathy to be had for rural property owners who can be victimized by the rules, regulations and land use politics. However, politically motivated initiatives by outsider groups with no stake in our quality of life is not the answer.

I am finally optimistic on this one.