Miscellaneous

They used to want a revolution.  Times have changed.  The spiritual heirs of the 60’s rebels are quasi-fascists, determined to use the power of the state to impose their will on the rest of us.  They want to regulate our lives.  It’s everywhere, at all levels of government.  People have about had it.  They want something done about it.

Enter Article V.  The Reagan Initiative adds two legs to the BBA stool.   First, the Federal Lands Commission, second regulatory reform.  The idea of regulatory reform came to me as a way to sell, politically, the Lands Commission.  I figured you’d get the coal states and a few more in the Old Confederacy and you’re at 26.  Regulatory reform fits within the scope of the call because it will massively increase federal tax revenue, and will also reduce spending.

But what, exactly, do you mean by regulatory reform?  What the hell is it?  I hadn’t thought that completely through, until I was sitting off in the woods last evening.  Then it occurred to me.  I don’t have to answer that question.  That’s up to the Convention.  They’ll figure it out.  It’s really just a political question.  How far do you want to go?  Under Article V, you can go as far as you want, as long as you can sell it, politically.  You could go whole hog, and dismantle the entire administrative state in one fell swoop.  The EPA and every other federal agency could be entirely stripped of their power.  They are parallel states, and unconstitutional.

That’s what they’d do in a perfect world, but that’s strong medicine.  It’s a bit much to take in one gulp.  The minimum would be the REINS act, already passed by the House of Representatives.  It requires Congressional approval of expensive regulations. It’s pretty weak.  Somewhere between REINS and abolition is the political sweet spot.

The thing is, this Convention will have some very bright, conservative, even libertarian people.  From every state in the union.  So you can go to the delegates from the ratification swing states and ask them.  Will this sell in Minnesota, and Maine, and Washington?  If they say no, you don’t go there.  That’s how you decide how far to go.  The voters in those states decide.

How far do they want to go?  I don’t really know.  Washington Senate President Pam Roach was the second person I tried to sell the Reagan Initiative to, after I went to Alaska.  She’s very conservative. A Mormon, a grandmother.  She told me about an anti-tax initiative that had recently been approved by the voters of Washington.  She said outside of about six legislative districts in inner Seattle the rest of the state is pretty conservative.  So maybe these people really want to take a bite out of the administrative state.  Make every regulation require Congressional approval, not just the big ones.  Hell, I’d go further, but it’s a good start.  This Amendment Convention will be the first, but it won’t be the last.

The thing is Minnesota and Maine are similar, politically, to Washington.  All the liberals are clustered together, and most of the state is fairly conservative.  These people are not Alaskans, but they’re not metropolitan types either.  They’re the kind of people who like all those Alaska reality shows.  They’re Alaskan wannabes.  For the purposes of Article V, they’re the swing voters.  I met Minnesota Speaker Kurt Daudt on the phone last week, and I expect to meet him in person in Seattle.  I’m very hopeful of getting a Maine leader there as well.

Nothing needs to be decided yet.  That’s for the Convention.  That’s a relief, quite frankly.  I’m not qualified to come up with an answer.  And I don’t have to.

That’s a big decision, one best made by a group, not one person, certainly not me.  I’m impetuous, and it’s better I don’t act on my own.  I’m not suited to be an executive.  People used to try to talk me into running for Governor, or Mayor of Anchorage.  I was never interested.  Had no desire for the job.  It’s a lot of work, for one thing.  Who needs that?  And dull work, being in meetings all the time.  Besides, my second attempt at running for office was also a failure, and I wasn’t sure I’d win.  I’d of run for Congress in a heartbeat, but never had an opening.

I ran for President of the UCLA Student Bar Association on a libertarian platform.  If elected, I would abolish it.  My campaign consisted of a poster I put up in the main hallway, explaining my candidacy.  A vote or me was a vote against sandbox politics.  My competition was another couple of chalkboard monitors.  I got a quarter of the vote, barely missing a runoff.  It was a relief.  Dismantling the Student Bar Association would have involved some work, which I wasn’t interested in.

I didn’t expect to win.  People knew I was conservative, and very few at UCLA were.  After my altercation with Henry McGee, and the “D” that came with it, I pulled in my horns.  Occasionally I was tempted, but pretty much held my tongue.

The only time I lost it was when some twitty little undergraduate came into class one day and told us we should go on strike to protest Nixon’s bombing of Cambodia.  That set me off.  He starts out by saying he knew we were all against the war.  I cut him off, and told him he knew no such thing.  He goes on for a while and finally I had enough.  I asked him what the hell are you even doing here?  I basically invited him to leave, and he did.  He pissed me off.  Nixon was trying to get us out of that God damn war, with some semblance of national honor left.  And this little punk wants to go on strike.

It’s no wonder I lost that election.  It was the last executive position I would seek.  The Presidency of the third grade, and now the Presidency of the Student Bar Association.  The only political losses I have suffered.

A guy like me works better in groups.

Do or die in the Oklahoma Senate on Wednesday.  Gary Banz is cautiously optimistic.  CoS is up in the House on the same day.  Gary is cooperating with them, and believes it helps us.  Dave Guldenschuh will fly in Sunday night, which we all feel good about.  He’s got a Georgia drawl, which probably won’t hurt in Oklahoma.  We’ve done, and are doing, all we can.  No more cutting bait. Time to fish.

No sign of a break in the South Carolina Senate, the most bizarre legislative chamber in the country.  The House leadership promised Kasich a floor vote.  He’s in state for a couple days, and will meet with them and call in his chip.  You make a promise, you keep it.  That’s politics.  It’s the only way things can work.  We think we have the votes in the House.  Passage there might put a little heat on the Senate, though I wonder.  Those old boys just do what they want to do.

Hal Wick went to see Senate President Andy Biggs in Phoenix.  He got nowhere.  Biggs wouldn’t give him his email address, wouldn’t give him his business card.  He told Hal about a book he wrote, “The Con of the Con-con.”  Hal said he’d like to read it, and Biggs offered to sell him one for $15.  He’s a sweetheart.  A lot of people on the Task Force are going to try to generate grass roots support in his district.  The idea is if he’s barraged by requests for our bill, he might soften.  Most politicians would.  I haven’t met Biggs, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he blew everybody off.  He’s bullheaded, and proud of it.  The Reagan Initiative ( a supply side BBA) might appeal to him, but maybe not.  Arizona may be the 34th state.  The Governor, who’s with us, is the only person who can force a vote in the Senate.  He’d have to call a special session to do it.  It may come to that.

Utah Rep. Ken Ivory leads the American Lands Council, dedicated to the transfer of federal lands to the states, or to the private sector.  He’s been at it for years, with a little success lately.  Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski passed a bill to transfer lands 51-49.  It was a show vote, not binding, really.  But a good sign.  Ken has agreed to make a presentation at the Seattle Summit. He knows this issue cold, and is a good advocate.  This will help.

New Mexico Rep. Yvette Herrell gave me an email introduction to her Speaker, Don Tripp.  I made an email pitch for the Summit.  I hope he can come, and I hope he can convince Senate President Mary Kay Papen to come.  This is a little tricky.  The Governor and the House in New Mexico are Republican.  The Senate’s Democrat, and they fought all session long, to a dead heat.   Nothing got done.  Bad blood, no doubt.  Maybe the Reagan Initiative will be something they can work together on.  It’s good for New Mexico.  Jobs, jobs, jobs.  I’m hoping.

Looks like I’ll be going to Savannah in mid May for an ALEC meeting.  I’ll be talking about the Reagan Initiative, and not just to legislators, but private sector people as well.  There are lot of private sector people at ALEC meetings.  I will be very interested in their reaction.  If they’re smart, they’ll help.  I’m not counting on it.  When it comes to politics, a lot of people in business are dumber than stumps.  I don’t know what it is.  They’re not stupid people.  Take Einstein, the smartest man of the 20th century.  I’ve read of couple biographies of him, and learned about his “politics”, if you can call it that.  The politics of a halfwit.  Amazing.  All these brainiacs at Google and Apple are the same way.  In my personal experience, the most incompetent politicians I have known have been engineers.  You get more sense from a bus driver.  They think in straight lines, in black and white, right and wrong.  That’s not politics.

I had a roommate like that at Cal.  Tom Bull, one of the brightest guys in his field, physical chemistry.  Cal was, and is, I believe, one of the top schools in the country in this area.  He knew I was into politics.  He wasn’t really.  He didn’t know enough about politics to have an opinion.  He just had an attitude.  He used to tell me how much better everything would be if scientists made all the decisions.

That is a scary thought.

Mary Kay Papen is an eighty year old grandmother who is President of the New Mexico Senate, and a Democrat.  The Association of Commerce and Industry bestowed the title of “Jobs Legislator” on her.  She’s no tree hugger, and this term in the Senate may be her last.  The New Mexico legislature was gridlocked this year.  The Republicans took over the House for the first time in forever, and they and Republican Governor Martinez fought the Democrats in the Senate to a draw.  Nothing got done, to the embarrassment of, I’m sure, Senate President Papen.  From what I’ve read, it wasn’t her fault.  She’s a conciliator, not a political hack.

I think the Reagan Amendment might appeal to her.  It would be good for New Mexico, and her grandchildren.  Her involvement would make it bipartisan.  Somebody has to be the leader and spokesperson for the Seattle Legislative Summit, or SLS.  It can’t be me, that’s for sure.  That would be weird.  I’d rather stay behind the scenes.  Mary Kay would be perfect.  She won’t have to do anything, really.  Or not much.

We’ll need a Co-Chair from the East.  A Republican woman would be best.  The more women, the better.  There are some men that could do it.  Senate Presidents Long and Faber of Indiana and Ohio come to mind.  But a woman would be much better.  With few exceptions, a woman who achieves a leadership role in a state legislature is a tough and savvy politician.  And it’s harder for the media to attack a woman.  People don’t like that.  Who I want is Joni Ernst, from Iowa, but she got elected to the U. S. Senate.  I want someone like Joni Ernst.  She’d be Co-Chair with Mary Kay, but she could also  use her involvement with the SIS to get elected to higher office, Governor or Senator.  The kind of woman I’m looking for is ambitious.  The hunt is on.

I’ll bet I find her.

Rep. Yvette Herrell of New Mexico is Co-Chair of the Article V Caucus and a leader of the Article V movement.  I finally was able to get through to her today, and we had a good conversation about the Reagan Amendment, and what, specifically, it would mean for New Mexico.  She will come to the Seattle legislative summit, and feels good about the chances of convincing House Speaker Tripp to accompany her.  She also agreed to discuss it with her Co-Chair, Senate Majority Whip Kevin Lundberg of Colorado.  Colorado is still in session, and Kevin is very busy.  I’ll get to him myself when they adjourn on May 11.

New Mexico is purple, and the Democrats control the Senate.  When I talk to Speaker Tripp about the Reagan Amendment, I’m going to ask him if he thinks it would be worthwhile to approach Senate President Mary Kay Papen with the idea.  The Reagan Amendment would be very good for New Mexico.  The feds own 34% of it.  Perhaps the best interests of New Mexico will prevail in a contest with her Democratic partisanship.  This will be a test case.  President Papen and the Speaker of the Colorado House are the only Democratic presiding officers of any legislative chamber west of the Mississippi, save the coast.  She is, presumably somewhat moderate, though I don’t know that.  I honestly don’t know how she’ll react to the Reagan Amendment.  Horror, probably.  It’ll be interesting.

Next is Nevada.  My target is Senate Majority Leader Michael Roberson.  First I’ll approach one of the five cosponsors of the CoS in the Nevada Assembly.  They know Article V, and they’ll understand the Reagan Amendment.  They’ll get me to Roberson.  This will be a very interesting conversation.  Roberson’s a lawyer, and smart.  He’s probably going to run for the U.S. Senate next year.  The Reagan Amendment has enormous implications for Nevada.  The feds own 83% of it.  Politicians in Nevada love to get up and raise hell about this, but they’ve never been able to do anything about it.  Roberson could.  The Reagan Amendment is no fantasy.  It could happen.  It’s very much in Roberson’s political interest to join our team.  I’m hoping he’ll be a leading member.

Marco Rubio has everything it takes to become President of the United States.  Unlike his fellow Cuban-American Senator, he comes across as a very nice, pleasant man.  He has what Reagan had, and Cruz lacks: humility.  The very best politicians have that.  Actually, the best people have that.  I’m very glad Marco is giving up his Senate seat.  To me, that speaks volumes.  That’s what Barry Goldwater did in 1964.  And Marco shouldn’t make a career of the Senate.  It would kill his soul.  I know of what I speak.  And if he became a great legislator, which he could, he wouldn’t necessarily help his chances of becoming President.  Ask Bob Dole.

I hope Marco is our next Vice President.  And I hope he performs well in that job, and is elected himself.  I like this man.  The Republicans can’t win without Florida, and he could deliver it.  It’s a no-brainer.

I should have left the legislature after six years, but I deluded myself into thinking we were going to take the House, and I’d  be Speaker.  My wife didn’t believe me, and she made me put it in writing.  She keeps it in her desk, and shows it to me every once in a while.

They’re like elephants.

Someone, I think Dave Guldenschuh, saw Ted Cruz’ father at a political event.  He’s for a BBA, but was noncommittal on Article V.  That reflects his son’s views.  John Steinberger, in South Carolina, pressed Ted on it, and was told, well, yes, I’m for using Article V.  John had to coax it out of him.  Cruz has publicly expressed caution, even skepticism, when it comes to Article V.

Cruz knows this is bullshit.  The time we live in cries out for the use of Article V.  He knows that because he may be the smartest man in America.  Alan Dershowitz, the greatest legal mind of our time, assures us of that.   If only I’d had Dershowitz as a law professor I might be almost as smart as Cruz.

Cruz is playing footsie with the Birchers and Eagle Forum.  Doesn’t want to piss them off.  He thinks he’s being a smart politician.  But he’s outsmarting himself.

He’s just showing he lacks balls.