[Lnc-business] Motion - Seeking Cosponsors

[Daniel Hayes]

Nick,

That sounds like really great advice.


Daniel

Sent from my iPhone

> On Jun 2, 2018, at 8:15 PM, Nicholas Sarwark via Lnc-business <lnc-business at hq.lp.org> wrote:
> 
> This is not a point of order, just a request.
> 
> If Arvin can work with Ken to come up with some inclusion criteria
> that work for both of them, it would save the committee, some of whom
> are presently running for office, lots of precious time.
> 
> -Nick
> On Sat, Jun 2, 2018 at 11:01 AM Arvin Vohra via Lnc-business
> <lnc-business at hq.lp.org> wrote:
>> 
>>   Fellow Members of the LNC,
>>   Over the last decades, we've fought for debate inclusiveness. We've
>>   fought against the 15 percent rule, 10 percent rules, 5 percent rules.
>>   A few days ago, the Convention Oversight Committee announced a new rule
>>   for the Vice Chair debate. The rule is that to participate in the
>>   debate, you need 10 percent of the tokens handed out. Given that there
>>   are at least 5 bona fide, legitimate candidates, who have participated
>>   in debates around the country, and that some percentage of the
>>   convention goers will forget to hand in tokens, this rule is
>>   essentially guaranteed to eliminate at least one of the options. It
>>   will also make it very difficult for non-insiders to be considered by
>>   the convention.
>>   If this was a congressional debate, we'd fight this rule. If this was a
>>   presidential or senate debate, we'd fight this rule. If this was a
>>   debate for county council, we'd fight this rule.
>>   We should not be holding ourselves to lower standards than we hold
>>   politics in general. I get that as a private organization we have the
>>   "right" to do so. But why would we want to hold ourselves to such a low
>>   standard?
>>   In addition to the moral issue, there is a clear strategic issue. When
>>   we complain about debate exclusion, our opponents need only point to
>>   our own behavior. "The LP complains about our 5 percent threshold, but
>>   they use 10 percent threshold, which is functionally a 20 percent
>>   threshold, given that so many people don't hand in debate tokens." At
>>   least in the polls the CPD uses, people actually have to answer the
>>   polling questions.
>>   This is the first time in a while that there is major excitement about
>>   the Vice Chair debate, and it is also the time when the COC has started
>>   acting as a worse version of the CPD, creating an 11th hour
>>   exclusionary rule.
>>   The LP stands for open debates. I personally stand for open debates.
>>   I've had the honor of speaking outside the CPD office in DC, protesting
>>   against their actions. Today, I ask the Libertarian National Committee,
>>   just as I have asked the Commission on Presidential Debates, to ensure
>>   a fair and open debate at our convention.
>>   I ask for cosponsors for the following motion:
>>   "Direct the COC to change inclusion rules as follows. Any candidate who
>>   can get 10 signatures should be included in the debate. Convention
>>   delegates may sign more than one petition."
>>   Respectfully,
>>   Arvin Vohra
>>   Vice Chair
>>   Libertarian National Committee
>>   --
>>   Arvin Vohra
>>   [1]www.VoteVohra.com
>>   [2]VoteVohra at gmail.com
>>   (301) 320-3634
>> 
>> References
>> 
>>   1. http://www.VoteVohra.com/
>>   2. mailto:VoteVohra at gmail.com