Radio Iowa:
http://www.radioiowa.com/gestalt/go.cfm?objectid=7C883752-5056-B82A-37564748D7E4F088...
If a constitutional convention comes up with an amendment or amendments to place before Iowa voters, a special election could be scheduled in 2011 according to Mauro. Mauro, the state's top election official, says a constitutional convention could not rewrite the entire state constitution and would be restricted to proposing amendments -- but there's no limit on the number of amendments which could be proposed.
"The legislature -- the General Assembly -- would have to put together a way of electing delegates (to a constitutional convention)," Mauro says. "And then these delegates can come back with all different kinds of changes, including putting anything in there, like asking for propositions to be put on the ballot like some of these other states do, to making some very radical changes."
Since 1970, Iowa voters have been asked once a decade whether they are in favor of a convention where amendments to the state's constitution would be drafted. The proposal has overwhelmingly failed in the past four decades, but Mauro suggests in 2010 gay marriage opponents may unite with others who want to amend the state's constitution, like those who want cities and counties to have authority over large-scale hog lots.
"It opens up a world of possibilities and a lot of maneuvering to see how this process could be put together," Mauro says. "...It's going to provide for very interesting debate, something we've never seen."
If, in 2010, a majority of Iowa voters agree a constitutional convention should convene, Iowa legislators would have to come up with a method of electing delegates in 2011. As for his views on gay marriage, Mauro, a Democrat who is a Catholic, says his religion teaches that marriage is between one man and one woman.
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Bleeding Heartland:
http://www.bleedingheartland.com/diary/2629/the-coming-battle-to-amend-the-iowa-constitution...
If voters approve a Constitutional Convention while keeping Democrats in charge of the legislature, Democrats would be able to draft the rules for selecting delegates to that convention. Who becomes a delegate will inevitably influence the kind of amendments the assembly would consider.
Certain interest groups may not be pleased by a campaign to approve a Constitutional Convention. Kay Henderson did some scenario spinning at Radio Iowa today and suggested that road-builders might be afraid of losing the constitutional provision that earmarks all gas tax revenues for the Iowa's Road Use Tax Fund. I wouldn't be surprised if agribusiness fought the idea of a constitutional convention too, because there's a lot of support in both parties for "local control" over large hog confinements.
I assume someone will soon poll Iowans on whether they would vote to call a Constitutional Convention to overturn gay marriage. I'm particularly interested to know whether Iowans who say they are for civil unions, but not gay marriage, feel strongly enough about that to support amending the Iowa Constitution.
Setting aside the constitutional discussion for a moment, many political observers are wondering how the Iowa Supreme Court ruling will affect the 2010 races. This will be a hammer for Republicans to use against Democrats in marginal state legislative districts, even if some of those Democrats themselves oppose gay marriage. I am not too worried, because no Democratic incumbents lost in 2008 after they voted to add sexual orientation to Iowa's civil rights law. The overall economy and deteriorating budget projections are much bigger threats to Democratic incumbents in 2010, in my opinion.
As I mentioned above, Governor Culver doesn't have a lot of good options now. He has no choice but to backtrack on his promise to "do what it takes" to "protect" heterosexual marriage from gay unions. Pushing for a constitutional amendment would produce a strongly negative response from much of the Democratic base. On the other hand, there are also Democrats and independents who oppose gay marriage and will want to see the governor do something. I hope he will use the unanimity of the court ruling and the legal advice he receives from the attorney general as excuses to revise his previous opinion on marriage equality. Republicans will try to hurt Culver on this issue in 2010, but the passionate opponents of gay marriage were never going to vote for Culver anyway.
Paradoxically, Culver could benefit from this controversy if it helps a social conservative win the Republican gubernatorial nomination next year. I believe the governor will win or lose based on economic issues, and he would have a tougher campaign against State Auditor David Vaudt or even Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey than against a hard-core "values Republican" such as Bob Vander Plaats.
The best scenario for Democrats would be for Congressman Steve "10 worst" King to run against Culver. I don't know anyone from either party who thinks King could win a statewide election. King told the Omaha World-Herald on Friday that he is more likely to run for governor in 2010 if Culver does not "step up" to try to overturn the Iowa Supreme Court ruling.
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