Special guest column by Debbie Staudte & Michelle Reittinger.
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any form of government becomes destructive to these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government...as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness...when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security."
These immortal words come from the Declaration of Independence, a document which instigated the Revolutionary War, and ultimately resulted in the establishment of this great nation. The form of government which replaced the oppression of the English monarchy was our Democratic Republic, “government of the people, by the people, for the people” (Abraham Lincoln, The Gettysburg Address).
Over the past several decades a disturbing trend has become commonplace, however, where those who have been called to represent the will of the people are no longer doing their duty as public servants. Elected officials are representing the will of their parties and special interest groups, rather than that of their constituency, and judges are overturning the laws established by the voice of the people, believing their views to be superior and supersede those of the general populous--”the governed”. They have decided that they know better than the people how this country is to be run, and are no longer listening to the people who elected them to office. It has become a “government, by the government, for the government” and the governed have been left feeling helpless and hopeless. NO MORE!!
It is time WE THE PEOPLE of the state of Iowa stepped up and took back our government! November 2, 2010 is a day of reckoning and we need to remind the government who is REALLY in charge. In 1993, Iowa passed the Defense of Marriage Act, a bill that was overwhelmingly supported by the majority of Iowans. On April 3, 2009, seven Iowa Supreme Court judges overturned that act, knowingly circumventing the will of the people. Immediately following this on April 15, 2009, Iowans were outraged to learn that their state had been targeted when Camilla Taylor, a Chicago-based lawyer for Lambda Legal, told The Washington Post, she had been actively working with others for seven years in Iowa to help bring this about.
Looking for relief to Governor Chet Culver who had promised to “do anything and everything to protect marriage from redefinition by the court”, Iowans were betrayed once again by Governor Culver who blatantly broke his promises and displayed contempt for his constituency through his arrogant inaction. On April 18th, fifteen days after the Supreme Court ruling, local citizens organized a public forum at the Fort Madison library, requesting that the state legislature give the people of the state the right to vote on an Iowa Marriage Amendment. Representatives Dave Heaton and Jerry Kearns attended, while Senator Gene Fraise did not.
The forum attendance was standing room only and received local press and television coverage. Rep. Heaton supported Iowan’s right to vote while Rep. Kearns said he needed “more time” to “study the issue and look at all the alternatives”. He did not want to “rush” the process, adding that our overwhelmingly voiced opinion to let us vote did not intimidate him. As the House session came to a close, the majority of the House Democracts refused to let the issue come to the floor.
More public forums were held around the state in the ensuing months. Polls consistently showed that two thirds of Iowans wanted an Iowa Marriage Amendment. Lee County citizens held two more public forums in December 2009, in Keokuk and Fort Madison. Only Rep. Heaton chose to attend. The first public forum in April 2009 was the only forum in the state of Iowa in which an elected Democrat attended. Once more, during the following legislative session, House Democrats again stood with their leadership, Senator Mike Gronstal and Speaker Pat Murphy, in preventing the vote from coming to the people. Over two million Iowan voters have been systematically denied the opportunity to vote on this issue.
November 2, 2010, the people of the state of Iowa must remind the judges and legislators that this is OUR government, and WE THE PEOPLE will decide what is best for us, and how we will be governed. We will replace those who have treated our right to govern ourselves with contempt with those who will respect our rights and will govern with integrity and respect those who have elected them to office. We MUST remove:
The three Supreme Court judges who are up for a retention vote this November: Iowa Chief Justice Marsha Ternus, Associate Justice Michael Streit, and Associate Justice David Baker.
Governor Chet Culver
Representative Jerry Kearns
“It is [our] right , it is [our] duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for[our] future security.” Let your voice be heard!
