IDAHO VOTERS' PAMPHLET

Ballot Propositions To Be Voted On at the General Election November 5, 2002

Argument AGAINST Proposition Two

It is time for Idaho citizens to take back our government — again. It is time to say NO to power-grabbing politicians in Boise by voting NO on Proposition 2.

It is time to tell them: "This is a democracy. We are citizens, not subjects....and you are not kings, to dispose of us as you wish."

Last February, arrogant politicians repealed the term limits initiative we passed in 1994 as an exercise of our constitutional rights.

HB 425 is the bill they did it with. HB 425 is legislation of, by, and for the career politicians. It lets power-grabbing politicians hold onto power forever.

• First the politicians went to the polls to ask voters to please change our minds about term limits. WE REFUSED. Instead, we Idaho citizens confirmed our vote on term limits. But the politicians ignored the people. (Why did the politicians ask us to vote again if they weren’t going to listen to us? Because they were only going to listen if we played along).
• Next the politicians sued us in court to overturn term limits. They took their case all the way to the Idaho Supreme Court, begging the justices to kill term limits. THE COURT UNANIMOUSLY REFUSED. The justices acknowledged that the term limits initiative is indeed constitutional. (The right of citizen initiative is in the constitution.) But the politicians ignored the court.
• Then – right after the Idaho Supreme Court upheld term limits! – the politicians got together behind closed doors and hatched HB 425 – an unheard of, unilateral repeal of an initiative that had been passed by the people and upheld by the courts.
• Governor Kempthorne vetoed the lawmakers’ anti-constitutional, anti-democratic power grab. He said, "In a republic, the people cannot be disenfranchised from establishing rules when they deem it necessary. That principle is reinforced in the Idaho State Constitution, which declares that ‘all political power is inherent in the people.’ "

The governor said he "cannot in good conscience allow this act of direct democracy to be wiped off the books by the mere stroke of my pen." But the power-grabbers ignored the governor too, and decided themselves to get rid of term limits on themselves. The politicians overrode the governor’s veto.

The politicians’ desperate power grab is even more proof that no politician should be allowed to remain in power forever, using the advantages of incumbency to squeeze out competition and ignore voters. It is proof of why we need term limits to ensure a constant stream offresh faces and new ideas into the Legislature.

Let’s stand up for our rights and tell the politicians that in Idaho, the people have the final word! Let’s vote NO on the politicians’ power grab. NO on HB 425. NO on Proposition 2.

— Committee to Repeal the Repeal

Rebuttal to Argument Against Proposition Two

Once in a great while average folks have the opportunity to vote with James Madison, Thomas Jefferson and the Founders of this great nation.

As the Founders were called upon, you are now called upon to look beyond the out of state threats, the name-calling rhetoric, to vote YES for your vital right – to have open access to the ballot.

This year you will be able to do as the Founders did – vote against the tyranny of a vocal minority. You will be able to vote YES on Proposition 2, and protect your constitutional right to vote for the candidate of your choice.

Limiting ballot access equals limiting who you can vote for in an election. The 1994 law stripped you of this fundamental right! It eliminated all chances of your local sheriff, prosecuting attorney and school board trustee to continue to serve you!

It needs to be repealed.

Fortunately, the Idaho Legislature did what you elected them to do – they listened to folks at home who wanted them to remove the absolutely unnecessary limitation on ballot access. They courageously voted to remove the limitations – RESTORING YOUR RIGHT TO VOTE FOR THE CANDIDATE OF YOUR CHOICE!

It didn’t take out of state money to do this, it took courage. The kind of courage all independent Idahoans respect. You have a chance to stand with them, against those who would limit your constitutional rights.

Take a stand for your rights and for good government – vote YES for Proposition 2.

— Idahoans for Voter Rights

Arguments printed on this page are the opinions of the authors and have not been checked for accuracy by any official agency.