The re-call judges amendment is bizzarre. Montana has very little, if any, problem with its judges although they frequently take progressive stance on issues. I would guess that right-wing interests could force a judge into a costly re-call election if they don’t like they way they vote.

I’m glad this issue is spotlighted on this forum, because it serves as a heads-up to other states where these type of initiatives may appear.

Again, if they barely have enough, then there is a problem. If they have way more then they need already, simply remove all the signitures from the person/persons involved in the questionable signitures. Simple.

How do you know? These signatures weren’t taken honestly, and it is clear that the propenents of this idea don’t have the confidence in their ideas to believe that anybody would agree with them, how do you know that this would have made the balots anyway?

The big problem here is that this basically makes the petitions lies, and that invalidates any point these petitions were trying to make. This weakens the power of later, valid petitions the more it happens. Eventually, petitions will just be completely ignored because of this kind of shit, and do you really want that?

If they want TABOR, let them have it. If they don’t like it later on, they can once again let the people of Montana vote on repealing it. I really don’t see the problem with this process.

Hell, the democrats are letting South Dakota voters vote on the abortion ban which is also a very godd thing.

Anytime the people of a state get to decide such matters, everyone wins IMO.

With all due respect, signing a petition is the first part of the voting process. If a petition came up that suggested children should be forced into industrial labor at the age of five you should be able to know right then that such a ballot deserves no support.

as a sign of how bad TABOR was for Colorado, Ref C was strongly endorsed by both parties and supported by Owens, who generally doesn’t believe in anything that isn’t specifically designed to help his golfing buddies.

Because of TABOR, the reallocation of funds was blocked, and the national standing of Colorado went from “marginal” to “lowest percentile”.

Just read the site referenced by Zookeeper in post #16. Here’s some Colorado business leaders:

“Coloradoans were told in 1992 . . . that [TABOR] guaranteed them a right to vote on any and all tax increases. . . . What the public didn’t realize was that it would contain the strictest tax and spending limitation of any state in the country, and long-term would hobble us economically.” — Tom Clark, Executive Vice President, Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation

“The [TABOR] formula . . . has an insidious effect where it shrinks government every year, year after year after year after year; it’s never small enough. …That is not the best way to form public policy.” — Brad Young, former Colorado state representative (R) and Chair of the Joint Budget Committee

“[Business leaders] have figured out that no business would survive if it were run like the TABOR faithful say Colorado should be run — with withering tax support for college and universities, underfunded public schools and a future of crumbling roads and bridges.” — Neil Westergaard, Editor of the Denver Business Journal

http://www.cbpp.org/10-19-05sfp.htm