Governing California
The event I attended was a talk by the 2006-2007 Leader-in-Residence, the Hon. Fred- Keeley. The focus of his talk was a fictional State of the State Address. Mr. Keeley used this fictional address to put forth ideas that he would seek to advance if he was Governor.
He premised his talk on the idea that the Governor and Legislature need to take the current goodwill the constituents have granted them and the need to work collaboratively to get things done. All of Mr. Keeley’s talk focused on state issues but some of the topics did seem to address similar local concerns.
An issue that he touched on which has a tremendous affect on local communities is increasing the average per pupil spending. He proposed raising the amount of per-pupil spending to raise California in the U.S. rankings. His goal is a modest one which would bring California from 45th -25th place in the national rankings. Although this issue is the state’s responsibility, the ramifications of increasing per-pupil spending would surely be felt at the local level. Poor schools would benefit tremendously from such proposals.
Mr. Keeley also referred to “broken” parts of the government. These pieces were:
Term Limits; Re-districting; and Campaign Finance Reforms. Even though these reforms would take place at the state level, all of these reform topics affect local politics. After all, the elected representatives from local districts represent the local governments.
He stated that term limits create representatives that are always running for something. Thus, they never fully lay roots and become dedicated public servants. Instead, they revert back to campaign mode. This lack of permanency prevents the representative from effectively representing the constituents in their district.
Civic participation was also cited as a problem. The present state of citizen involvement is low due to citizen’s pessimistic view of politics. He said that we currently equate citizenship with consumerism. As in state elections, this view holds true in local politics and is evident from the turn-out during the most recent mayoral election. There is a need to get citizens disenthralled and active. Plainly, they need to have a reason to become involved. Thus far, politicians have been unable to attract the reluctant voter.
The most intriguing and insightful comment that I heard from Mr. Keeley was when he described our state’s correctional system. He stated that politicians needed to be brave in opposing their historically supportive base. He was referring to the state politician’s reluctance in dealing with a broken part of our system—the Department of Corrections.
This statement resonated quite profoundly for me because politicians should represent their constituents fully. If there is a part of the government structure that is in disarray, you must be able to take an objective look and make a call as to whether it is working properly. If it is not working properly as in the example Mr. Keeley provide with the Department of Corrections, you must be willing to say so, even if doing so cost you crucial votes.
I enjoyed listening to Mr. Keeley and hope to take his course in the near future. His excitement and dedication for Politics was evident. He seems to truly enjoy his work.
He premised his talk on the idea that the Governor and Legislature need to take the current goodwill the constituents have granted them and the need to work collaboratively to get things done. All of Mr. Keeley’s talk focused on state issues but some of the topics did seem to address similar local concerns.
An issue that he touched on which has a tremendous affect on local communities is increasing the average per pupil spending. He proposed raising the amount of per-pupil spending to raise California in the U.S. rankings. His goal is a modest one which would bring California from 45th -25th place in the national rankings. Although this issue is the state’s responsibility, the ramifications of increasing per-pupil spending would surely be felt at the local level. Poor schools would benefit tremendously from such proposals.
Mr. Keeley also referred to “broken” parts of the government. These pieces were:
Term Limits; Re-districting; and Campaign Finance Reforms. Even though these reforms would take place at the state level, all of these reform topics affect local politics. After all, the elected representatives from local districts represent the local governments.
He stated that term limits create representatives that are always running for something. Thus, they never fully lay roots and become dedicated public servants. Instead, they revert back to campaign mode. This lack of permanency prevents the representative from effectively representing the constituents in their district.
Civic participation was also cited as a problem. The present state of citizen involvement is low due to citizen’s pessimistic view of politics. He said that we currently equate citizenship with consumerism. As in state elections, this view holds true in local politics and is evident from the turn-out during the most recent mayoral election. There is a need to get citizens disenthralled and active. Plainly, they need to have a reason to become involved. Thus far, politicians have been unable to attract the reluctant voter.
The most intriguing and insightful comment that I heard from Mr. Keeley was when he described our state’s correctional system. He stated that politicians needed to be brave in opposing their historically supportive base. He was referring to the state politician’s reluctance in dealing with a broken part of our system—the Department of Corrections.
This statement resonated quite profoundly for me because politicians should represent their constituents fully. If there is a part of the government structure that is in disarray, you must be able to take an objective look and make a call as to whether it is working properly. If it is not working properly as in the example Mr. Keeley provide with the Department of Corrections, you must be willing to say so, even if doing so cost you crucial votes.
I enjoyed listening to Mr. Keeley and hope to take his course in the near future. His excitement and dedication for Politics was evident. He seems to truly enjoy his work.
posted by idealist at 5:17 PM
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