Should I run against Doggett?

Written by: Scott Trimble on Sep 23, 2007 3:52 AM EDT

Linked to groups: Democracy for Texas - Austin

Many of us in Austin groups working for peace and/or impeachment of Bush and/or Cheney have made numerous attempts to set up a meeting between our groups and our representative, Lloyd Doggett, to discuss these issues, and have been repeatedly rebuffed.  This experience has led me to decide to seriously explore the possibility of running against Mr. Doggett in 2008, not specifically because of these issues (impeachment will be moot after the 2008 elections, and hopefully, so will the the conflagration in Iraq), but because it is my belief that our supposedly representative democracy has become not so representative.

Mathematically speaking, each representative in Congress has the onus of representing, on average, about 680,000 people (that's about 480,000 voting-age folks, about 340,000 of whom are likely registered voters...and again, these are very rough averages).  Trying to represent that many people comes with a handful of logistical problems, exacerbated by an electoral system that has become more about money than issues.  I think it is time we start to address these problems.


This brings me to the essence of my platform.  While this is just a sketch that I hope we can all fill in together, it is basically this:

If elected, I plan to appoint seven area secretaries:
one for Colorado and Fayette counties, one for Lavaca and Gonzales counties, one for Caldwell County and the section of Bastrop County that is in 25, one for Hays County, and three for the section of Travis that is in the district.

The job of each of these secretaries will be to arrange precinct assemblies within their areas. All who reside in a precinct will be welcome to attend and participate in the discussions and decisions there.  At the end of the session, each precinct will elect four delegates by a single transferable vote to attend an area assembly.  The delegates at the area assemblies will bring the ideas from their precincts, and represent the people of their precincts in the discussions and decisions made there.  Then they will elect seven delegates from each area to a district assembly. These 49 delegates will continue to discuss the issues brought forth from the precinct level with me, and we will decide as a group, using democratic deliberation, how I should vote on upcoming issues, rather than me deciding according to my own opinions, or allowing wealthy contributors, corporations, or other interest groups to push decisions on me.  I will be there to represent the people of district 25, and only the people.  In cases where the district assembly is split and deadlocked, I may still have to vote based on my own judgment, but it will be with a great deal more knowledge of where my constituents stand than most other representatives would under our current model.

Eventually, I hope that citizens in other districts will be inspired to emulate or modify this idea and bring democracy to their own districts.  Further, I hope that the idea will ultimately spread across the nation and a more binding form of democracy will be amended into our constitution. 

If this idea appeals to you, then please consider supporting my campaign, even if you are not in the 25th district.  Hopefully, it will spread to your district soon, but we have to model it first.

I would like to meet with any of you who are interested in being directly involved with the campaign.  I will need people to help me understand election laws, including campaign finance laws. I will need a treasurer, an event committee to plan fundraisers and vote-raisers, and of course a campaign manager.  I will need help researching a variety of information for fleshing out my platform, including finding out how much money a member of Congress is allowed for hiring staff, renting space, etc.  And I am probably forgetting several others.  And from all of you, I will want to know whether you think I should run as a Democrat in the primary, or as a Green or independent in the general election?  Or is it legal in Texas (we all know it is in Connecticut) to run as a Democrat in the primary and then switch to either another party or to independent status if I don't win the primary?

I will be planning some public meetings sometime soon where you can meet me in person, if you don't already know me, and discuss anything you'd like.  Please feel free to offer suggestions about that as well.

Sincerely,
Scott Trimble

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Location: Austin, TX