Right Wing Initiative Watch: Hutcherson refiles to overturn civil rights law
Ken Hutcherson, the bigoted leader of the Antioch Bible Church, has refiled his proposal to overturn Washington's recently expanded civil rights law, ESHB 2661, as an initiative to the people. Hutcherson used his own name to file, but unlike last time (when he filed an initiative to the Legislature) he used an Olympia post office box instead of Antioch's own address.
Hutcherson's initiative is essentially the same thing as last year's Referendum 65, which Tim Eyman failed to qualify for the ballot.
Initiatives to the people currently require at least 224,800 valid signatures from citizens registered to vote in Washington. The actual number of signatures needed is significantly higher (270,000 is probably the minimum number required) because a certain percentage is always invalid. Fail to collect enough extra, and you won't make the ballot - which is what happened to Tim Eyman's I-917 last year.
Permanent Defense will soon be reactivating its system for reporting the activity of right wing petitioners so that the the signature drives of Hutcherson, Eyman, and others can be monitored. Data from the system last year allowed Permanent Defense to accurately forecast that I-920 and I-933 would make the ballot, and later, confirm that Tim Eyman shut down I-917's signature drive in early June at about the same time he failed to qualify Referendum 65.
Another initiative which purports to protect traditional marriage has been filed by Seattle resident Gregory Gadow, but it's not what you'd suspect it is. Here's a description of what the initiative is supposed to do from Gadow's website:
Now, there's no denying that anyone who has the money can get anything they want on the ballot, but who is going to supply the half a million dollars it'll take to qualify this? Gadow's own website, in a dated statement from last year, says "we must raise at least $300,000 over the next ten months" which is an acknowledgment of the cost of a paid signature drive.
Three hundred grand probably won't cut it, though. Upwards of half a million bucks is the minimum a sponsor needs to buy his or her way on.
Hutcherson and Eyman appear to be the only right wing zealots serious about qualifying something this year....so far. We'll be keeping watch over the next few months to see if they're joined by anyone else.
Hutcherson's initiative is essentially the same thing as last year's Referendum 65, which Tim Eyman failed to qualify for the ballot.
Initiatives to the people currently require at least 224,800 valid signatures from citizens registered to vote in Washington. The actual number of signatures needed is significantly higher (270,000 is probably the minimum number required) because a certain percentage is always invalid. Fail to collect enough extra, and you won't make the ballot - which is what happened to Tim Eyman's I-917 last year.
Permanent Defense will soon be reactivating its system for reporting the activity of right wing petitioners so that the the signature drives of Hutcherson, Eyman, and others can be monitored. Data from the system last year allowed Permanent Defense to accurately forecast that I-920 and I-933 would make the ballot, and later, confirm that Tim Eyman shut down I-917's signature drive in early June at about the same time he failed to qualify Referendum 65.
Another initiative which purports to protect traditional marriage has been filed by Seattle resident Gregory Gadow, but it's not what you'd suspect it is. Here's a description of what the initiative is supposed to do from Gadow's website:
Marriage will be restricted only to those couples able to have children together....Couples married in Washington will have three years from the date of their marriage or 18 months from the date the initiative becomes law, whichever is later, to either have children together or provide documentation that they have fulfilled the primary purpose of marriage.An interesting proposal, to be sure, but it's probably not headed anywhere.
Failure to comply would result in the marriage being annulled.
Couples married outside of Washington who live in this state will have three years from the date of their marriage or 18 months from the date the initiative becomes law or 30 days from the date they move into this state, whichever is later, to either have children or provide documentation that they have fulfilled the primary purpose of marriage. Failure to comply would result in the marriage being unrecognized as a valid marriage until proper documentation is filed.
Now, there's no denying that anyone who has the money can get anything they want on the ballot, but who is going to supply the half a million dollars it'll take to qualify this? Gadow's own website, in a dated statement from last year, says "we must raise at least $300,000 over the next ten months" which is an acknowledgment of the cost of a paid signature drive.
Three hundred grand probably won't cut it, though. Upwards of half a million bucks is the minimum a sponsor needs to buy his or her way on.
Hutcherson and Eyman appear to be the only right wing zealots serious about qualifying something this year....so far. We'll be keeping watch over the next few months to see if they're joined by anyone else.
