Denver VOTER League of Women Voters of Denver March 2016 www.lwvdenver.org info@lwvdenver.org Denver, CO 80220 Phone: 303-321-7571 Fax: 303-320-8557 Continue our Discussion of Money in Politics On March 21, League of Women Voters of Denver will present a screening of PAY 2 PLAY, a film about the corrupting influence of money in politics. As you know we have been looking at this topic for some time now and the League should approve an update of our National position at National Convention in June. This movie should be a fun way to contemplate it again. Ask friends and neighbors to come, too. PAY 2 PLAY (P2P) follows filmmaker John Ennis quest to find a way out from under a pay-to-play system and features Robert Reich, Lawrence Lessig, Marianne Williamson, Noam Chomsky, Van Jones, John Nichols, Thom Hartmann and many others. Ennis defines this system as the cycle in which politicians reward their donors with even larger sums from the public treasury through contracts, jobs, tax cuts, and deregulation. P2P picks up where Ennis left off in his last film FREE FOR ALL, after his investigation into election fraud in Ohio led him to establish Video the Vote to watch the polls on Election Day. Ennis has recognized that by Election Day, so much has already happened to decide which candidates are or are not on the ballot, the result is surprisingly undemocratic. Driven by his need to make the world better for his newborn daughter to inherit, Ennis determined to study our road to elected office to find a way we can get out from under the Pay 2 Play system. PARTNERS: American Family Voices, Center for Media and Democracy, Color of Change, Common Cause, Democracy For America, Democracy Initiative, Free Speech For People, Global Exchange/Elect Democracy, Money Out Voters In, Move To Amend, Public Campaign, Public Citizen, March Briefings End of Life Options Act Monday, March 7 Green Room (note room change) 5:30 p.m. Social Time/Announcements 6:00-7:30 p.m. Program Pay to Play Movie Event Monday, March 21 McCollum Room 5:30 p.m. Social Time/Announcements 6:00-7:30 p.m. Movie Rebuild The Dream, Represent US, ReThink Media, Rock The Vote, Rootstrikers and Stamp Stampede FILMMAKER BIO: John Wellington Ennis, Director / Producer John Wellington Ennis is a filmmaker, activist, and father. His previous films are FREE FOR ALL!: One Dude s Quest to Save Democracy and the Upright Citizens Brigade s Wild Girls Gone, starring Amy Poehler. Ennis has written for The Huffington Post, The Onion, and Melrose & Fairfax. He is a co-founder of Video the Vote, a citizen journalism project covering election problems, and is on the board of Public Interest Pictures. He attended the film schools at New York University and University of Southern California and has taught documentary filmmaking at UCLA Extension.
Denver VOTER, March 2016 2 End of Life Options Act Volume 2016, Issue #3 Periodicals postage paid at Denver, Colorado Denver VOTER (USPS 019817) Published twice in September and monthly October through June by: LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS OF DENVER Denver, CO 80220 303-321-7571 Fax: 303-320-8557 www.lwvdenver.org info@lwvdenver.org A one-year subscription is included in annual membership dues. Director of Organization Marge Fisch Director of Program Marty Sloven Director of Communications Pearlanne Zelarney Secretary Carol Andersen Treasurer Catherine Decker Denver VOTER Editor Pearlanne Zelarney Denver VOTER Assistant Editor Marty Sloven Office Manager Heather Colliander Postmaster, please send address changes to: Denver VOTER LWV Denver Denver, CO 80220 Monday, March 7 Green Room* 5:30 p.m. Social Time/Announcements Montview Presbyterian Church 6:00-7:30 p.m. Program The End of Life Options Act (HB 1054 and SB 25) was introduced in this legislative session in early February. These bills address an important question: does an individual have a legal right to request, and do physicians have a legal right to provide to the patient, a means to hasten the end of life in the situation of terminal illness? After a hearing in Senate State Affairs Committee, SB 25 was PI d (postponed indefinitely) on a 3-2 vote. HB 1054 passed the House Judiciary Committee on a 6-5 vote. Interestingly, both these votes followed party lines. As we go to print, we do not have a date for the House debate. The issue is indeed controversial and the League of Women Voters does not have positions to support or oppose it. However, there is much interest in the issue, and Representative Lois Court of Denver, one of the House sponsors, has agreed to explain the details of the bill and its journey through the legislature at this educational-only briefing. *The Green Room is a new location for us since the McCollum Room is in use by the church on the first Mondays of the month. It is directly above the McCollum Room on the second floor. Pay to Play Movie Event Monday, March 21 McCollum Room 5:30 p.m. Social Time/Announcements Montview Presbyterian Church 6:00-7:30 p.m. Movie The League s Position Statement of Position on Campaign Finance, as announced by National Board, January 1974 and revised March 1982: The League of Women Voters of the United States believes that the methods of financing political campaigns should ensure the public s right to know, combat corruption and undue influence, enable candidates to compete more equitably for public office and allow maximum citizen participation in the political process. This position is applicable to all federal campaigns for public office presidential and congressional, primaries as well as general elections. It also may be applied to state and local campaigns.
3 Denver VOTER, March 2016 Did you see this in the HUB on February 11? Participate in Your Precinct Caucus and Be a Part of Super Tuesday On Tuesday, March 1at 7:00 p.m. Colorado will be one of 15 U.S. states and territories that will participate in Super Tuesday the mega-media date when most states hold primary elections or state caucuses to determine their preference for presidential candidates and other national and state offices. In Colorado that means precinct caucuses. Unlike other states who conduct primary elections, Colorado conducts precinct caucuses a grassroots process that give voters the opportunity to meet in groups to advocate and vote for political candidates that will represent them in the 2016 election. Caucuses used to be held in homes or small community halls, but today s events are usually held in larger places to accommodate more participants. At a caucus, participants: Speak on behalf of their favorite candidates Vote for their favorites Elect delegates to the next political countywide Assemblies and Convention They also discuss and consider resolutions to be included in the party s platforms Who can attend? Anyone who is a registered voter in the Democrat or Republican Party. While there are other political parties in Colorado, the Republican and Democratic parties are designated major parties based on the number of votes each party received in the 2014 election. Also, Colorado does not allow unaffiliated (independent) voters to participate in a caucus. If you did not register with a political party by January 4, 2016, you can t participate, but may attend. This year there s another caveat. While Democrats will continue to conduct their presidential candidate polls, the Colorado Republican party will not. The reason? The GOP requires that the Republican candidate who wins the caucus must be supported by the delegates at the GOP national convention. But by the time delegates attend the national convention, their candidate may have dropped out of the competition. By not participating in a presidential poll at the March 1 caucus, Republican delegates have the freedom to support any candidate at the GOP national event. The Colorado Republican caucus will, however, still vote for and select candidates for other positions and delegates to attend their state assemblies and convention. So participate in this democratic process. It s an exciting election year and your vote matters. To find your precinct number and caucus location contact these political parties: The Democratic Party of Denver: denverdemocrats.org, info@denverdemocrats.org or 303-830-8242 The Denver Republican Party: denvergop.org or 303-782-9555 Marlu Burkamp Communications Coordinator League of Women Voters of Arapahoe and Douglas Counties
Denver VOTER, March 2016 4 Unit Meetings: A place for lively conversation! Buffalo Mon., Mar. 14, 5:30 p.m. Location to be determined Contact Joan Friend for information 303-596-1022 or jfriendrd@gmail.com Cheesman Tue., Mar. 8, 9:15 a.m. Susan Stark 310 Bellaire St. 303-333-4094 Tue., Mar. 22, 9:15 a.m. Cindy Sestrich 1144 Lafayette St. 303-832-6739 Cherrington Thu., March 10, 1:00 p.m. Marcia Verba 910 S. Clayton Way 303-629-0614 Thu., March 24, 1:00 p.m. Andrea Mitchell 36 S. Garfield St. 303-277-0527 Heritage Thu., Mar. 24, 10:30 a.m. Regular meeting place: Heritage Club 2020 S. Monroe St. For info call Betsy Kester 303-756-4857 Highland/Woodbury Wed., Mar. 2, 5:45 p.m. West 29th Restaurant and Bar 5560 West 29th Ave Contact Sally Augden for information 303-455-5800 Observatory Tue., Mar. 8, 7:00 p.m. Bev Bridges 2360 S. Milwaukee Street 303-758-2137 Mon., Mar., 21, 5:30 p.m. Attend Pay-to-Play Movie Event St. Vrain Wed., Mar. 23, 9:15 a.m. Joan Gendreau 4570 E. Yale Ave., #703 303-756-0842 Whiteman Tue., Mar. 8, 9:15 a.m. Connie Bean 5138 South Perry 303-798-0256 Tue., Mar. 22, 9:15 a.m. Peggy Pitchford 2661 S Zurich Court 303-638-5534 March Calendar Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 7 End of Life Options Briefing, 5:30 p.m. Green Room 8 Board Meeting, League Office, 3:30 p.m. 21 Pay to Play Movie Event, 5:30 p.m. McCollum Room 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 Spring Break Office Hours Heather will be out of the office from Monday March 28 April 5. There will be coverage of the phones and emails. Timing of Evening Briefings There seems to be confusion about the timing of the evening briefings. We gather around 5:30 p.m. for some social time. We begin any announcements in time to begin the meat of the briefing no later than 6:00 p.m. The program should be an hour or more if needed, ending questions and the evening no later than 7:30. Please be prepared to stay until 7:30 p.m. Marty Sloven Director of Program
5 Denver VOTER, March 2016 Council 2016 The League of Women Voters of Colorado Council 2016 will convene on Saturday, May 21 at 12:30 p.m. and will conclude on Sunday, May 22 at noon in Montrose Colorado. All delegates are invited to come early for a networking lunch on Saturday from 11:00 a.m. until noon. The Denver League has two voting delegates, but others may attend as observers. Registration is $45, which includes Saturday lunch and dinner and Sunday breakfast. Hotel rooms have been reserved at the Holiday Inn Express in Montrose. You may reserve a room by calling 970-240-1800 or 1-800-550-9252. Be sure to mention the League of Women Voters of Colorado to receive the discounted rate of $99/night plus tax for a room with two queen beds. Call the office if you are interested in attending. In Memoriam Our sympathies to Alice Bakemeier, a member of the Cheesman unit, on the loss of her husband in February. Members, offer this application to friends and neighbors! League of Women Voters of Denver Denver, CO 80220-1239 JOIN LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS NOT FOR WOMEN ONLY! Name(s) Email Address City Zip Phone (H) (W) (C) ANNUAL DUES: (for Denver, State & National) Regular member... $60.00 Two residing at same address... $90.00 Sustaining member... $125.00 Two sustaining members at same address... $185.00 Student... $25.00 CONTRIBUTIONS: To LWV Denver... To Dues Assistance Fund... $ $ Make check payable to LWV Denver. (Dues are not tax-deductible. Tax-deductible contributions may be made by separate check to LWVD Education Fund.) THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT! TOTAL ENCLOSED $
League of Women Voters of Denver Denver, CO 80220-1239 Periodical Postage Paid in Denver Briefing On Homelessness with Tom Luehr, Director of the St Francis Center; Jackie Bell of DPS's Homeless Education Network; and member, Susan Stark, with an update on homelessness and the elderly. Members Peggy Pitchford, Barbara Ann Ford and Marge Fisch prepare for the briefing by reviewing the briefing materials.