Following up on the diary I posted this morning, this post compiles links to Bleeding Heartland’s coverage of national politics from July through December 2009. Health care reform was again the number one topic. I wish there had been a happy ending.

If you vote in Iowa, you’ll find a constitutional amendment on the ballot:

THE QUESTION: Iowa voters will be asked to strike the words “idiot” and “insane person” from a section of the Iowa Constitution that refers to people who are banned from voting. The words would be replaced with the more socially acceptable term “mentally incompetent.”

THE ACTION: An amendment needs to be approved by simple majorities in the Iowa House and Senate in two consecutive general assemblies. It then needs to be approved by a simple majority of voters in the next general election.

THE HISTORY: Voters in Iowa may remember hearing about this amendment before. It was supposed to be on the ballot in 2006. But the secretary of state’s office, then headed by now-Gov. Chet Culver, and the then-chief clerk in the House failed to publish a notice of the proposed changes as required.

Representative Pam Jochum, who is one of the best we’ve got in the Iowa legislature, has been trying to get this done for years.

Don’t leave that part of the ballot blank–vote yes.

Looks like the backers of the Polk County Courthouse renovation plan needed to do a better job of getting supporters to vote by absentee ballot:

A $132 million plan to renovate the Polk County Courthouse and build an eight-story annex next door suffered a double-digit loss today at the polls.

The result was a victory for anti-tax campaigners, who said the proposal would burden property owners during uncertain economic times.

Voters, 56.7 percent to 43.3 percent, ultimately rejected supporters’ arguments that the bond issue represented an urgent need for a courthouse some consider cramped, outdated and unsafe. […]

The proposal was projected to add $23.24 to the annual property tax bill on a home valued at $100,000. The borrow-and-build plan needed 60 percent approval to pass. The measure failed 17,603 to 13,453.

Voter turnout – 31,056, or 11 percent – was lower than some early predictions today. More than 80 percent of the 2,499 absentee ballot voters sided with the courthouse proposal.

They need to start holding referenda on the same date as regularly scheduled elections. I don’t see why this vote couldn’t have been held on June 3, when many more voters in Polk County are likely to be voting in third Congressional district primary.

Although this vote wasn’t as lopsided as last summer’s “Destiny” tax proposal vote, which only got 15 percent approval, it again highlights the lack of public trust in county officials to borrow and spend our money wisely. I don’t have an answer for how to deal with this. I think multiple poor decisions by county officials over a number of years have contributed to the problem.

Meanwhile, I’m afraid it’s only a matter of time before some big tragedy occurs due to the overcrowded conditions at the Polk County Courthouse.    

The Polk County Democrats forwarded via e-mail an open letter signed by many well-known Democratic attorneys, including Polk County Attorney John Sarcone, prominent plaintiff’s attorney Roxanne Conlin, superb defense attorney Alfredo Parrish, Iowa Democratic Party chairman Scott Brennan, and past IDP chairman Gordon Fischer.

I agree with them that Polk County needs to renovate its courthouse, which is unsafe and inadequate in many ways.

I will be voting yes on April 29.

From Local Party Activists:

BUILDING FOR JUSTICE VOTE YES ON APRIL 29TH

TO OUR DEMOCRAT FRIENDS:

Our courthouse is the last bastian of direct democracy.  It is the place where any citizen with any complaint can have their issue heard and resolved.  It is also the place where criminal justice is delivered.  Access to our courthouse is the cornerstone of our republic.  Access requires a safe and secure environment, free from intimidation.  

Our Polk County Courthouse is more than 100 years old.  It is overcrowded, unsafe, and without adequate security.  The condition of our courthouse negatively impacts the delivery of justice and access guaranteed to all.

We must do something now.  A plan to fix our problem will come before the voters on April 29th.  Please join us in supporting the courthouse referendum.  The project has been carefully studied.  It is reasonable and sensible in scope, it fully restores and utilizes our historic courthouse, and solves our problem now and for future generations.

Let’s come together as our community did over 100 years ago to solve this problem and create a legacy for generations to come.  Justice deserves nothing less.

Vote “YES” on the Polk County Courthouse Referendum on April 29th.  For further information visit: wwwbuildingforjustice.org.

Marc Beltrame

Ray Blase

Scott Brennan

Roxanne Conlin

Guy Cook

Gordon Fischer

Tom Henderson

Bill McCarthy

Al Parrish

John Sarcone

Tom Whitney