Tampa Indy Voter Guide
Tampa & Hillsborough County, FL, Nov 2 2004

http://www.indyvoter.org/voterguide.php?detail=633&printsafe=1

Tampa Indy Voter Guide
Tampa & Hillsborough County, FL, Nov 2 2004

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We searched the Internet high and low for someone who didn’t suck to vote for in the November 2nd elections. Candidates who cared about what you said was important to you – reproductivefreedom, the war in Iraq, health care, the possibility of a draft, civil rights, nuclear weapons and same sex civil unions. Our sources (check ‘em out): The Supervisor of Elections for Hillsborough County (http://www.votehillsborough.org/) Project Vote Smart (http://www.vote-smart.org/) Congress.org (http://www.congress.org/) Look us up on the web http://indyvoter.org/tampa Let us know what you think of our voter guide! Email us at tampa@indyvoter.org Or call Kai & Frank at 813-472-1707




Candidate/Ballot Item: President and Vice President: JOHN F. KERRY AND JOHN EDWARDS (D)
Position: Yes
Reason: W. has got to go. We are so over him. While sketchy on how soon they’ll wrap up this war in Iraq,to their credit both Kerry and Edwards have always voted consistently for women’s reproductive freedom. You heard them in the debates – no draft, health care for all, and though Kerry does feelmarriage is between a man and a woman, he doesn’t feel he has to impose his personal belief on everyone else.



Candidate/Ballot Item: US Senate: BETTY CASTOR (D)
Position: Yes
Reason: She’s pro- affirmative action, against the War in Iraq, and supporting Health Care for All. Her opponent Mel Martinez is a pretty crazy right-winger.



Candidate/Ballot Item: US Representative District 11: KARL M. BUTTS – write-in candidate
Position: Yes
Reason: Write Karl in because he is down. He’s a farmer on a commune in Plant City and he cares about defending workers and women’s reproductive rights, and wants health care for all. His opponentsare Jim Davis, the incumbent middle of the road Democrat and Robert Edward Johnson, a libertarian, who doesn’t believe in affirmative action or public funding for reproductive freedom.



Candidate/Ballot Item: State Representative District 56: “NEIL” – write-in candidate
Position: Yes
Reason: Just write in “NEIL” on this one! He’s for something that we need locally; quality public transportation. Neil Constatino is a local activist who lobbied for the Friendship Trail Bridge. His opponent, Trey Traviesa, is a conservative Republican venture capitalist.



Candidate/Ballot Item: State Representative District 57: DEBORAH COPE (D)
Position: Yes
Reason: Vote for Deborah because she cares about health care, the environment, and she is endorsed by the AFL-CIO. She is running again Faye Culp, a Republican who opposes affirmative action.



Candidate/Ballot Item: State Representative District 60: KAREN PEREZ (D)
Position: Yes
Reason: Karen is great. A solid Democrat who is pro-choice and believes we should all have quality health insurance. What more is there to say? Well, how about her opponent, Republican Ed Homan,supports limiting a woman’s reproductive freedom, does not want to recognize same sex civil unions, and says “no” to affirmative action.



Candidate/Ballot Item: Retain Justice of Supreme Court Kenneth B. Bell
Position: No
Reason: Kenneth B. Bell is listed as nonpartisan. Your options are to “yes” (to keep Justice Bell) or “no” (to remove Justice Bell). Vote No. Bell is a conservative former real estate lawyer from Pensacolawho is a registered Republican and has a reputation of supporting conservative,religious right policies.



Candidate/Ballot Item: Retain Justice of Supreme Court Raoul G. Cantero, III
Position: No
Reason: Raoul G. Cantero, III is also listed as nonpartisan. Again, your options are to vote “yes” (to keepJustice Cantero) or “no” (to remove Justice Cantero). Vote No. Cantero is a corporate lawyer who was nominated to the Florida Supreme Court by Governor Jeb Bush. He secured the release fromprison of a radical anti-Castro terrorist Orlando Bosch. Cantero once described Bosch on Miami radio as “a great Cuban patriot.”



Candidate/Ballot Item: Retain District Court of Appeal Judge Charles T. Canady
Position: No
Reason: VOTE NO While a member of the U.S. Congress, Canady is on record as opposing a woman's right tochoose, opposing affirmative, and opposing the right to die for terminal patients. He is one of Jeb Bush's political cronies and acts as the judicial equivalent of a conservative rubber stamp. He is bad, bad, bad, let's get him out of office.



Candidate/Ballot Item: Retain District Court of Appeal Judge Stevan T. Northcutt
Position: Yes
Reason: Northcutt was appointed by Lawton Chiles in 1997. Northcutt is active in local programs and hisrecord has been excellent on all issues.



Candidate/Ballot Item: Retain District Court of Appeal Judge Craig C. Villanti
Position: No
Reason: Both Villanti and Wallace are two more of the conservative republican machine's political cronies.Bush appointed them and WE CAN GET THEM OUT!



Candidate/Ballot Item: Retain District Court of Appeal Judge Douglas A. Wallace
Position: No
Reason: Both Villanti and Wallace are two more of the conservative republican machine's political cronies.Bush appointed them and WE CAN GET THEM OUT!



Candidate/Ballot Item: County Clerk of the Circuit Court: PAT FRANK (D)
Position: Yes
Reason: Plain and simple: Pat Frank is just better qualified.



Candidate/Ballot Item: Supervisor of Elections: ROB MACKENNA (D)
Position: Yes
Reason: Everybody LOVES Rob! He’s a computer programmer pushing for a voting paper trail. He’s the only candidate in Florida endorsed by Democracy for America, and hey, he's been to a show at the Orpheum!



Candidate/Ballot Item: County Commissioner District 7: Denyse Layne (D)
Position: Yes
Reason: Layne has a positive stance on heath care, and is heavily endorsed by several organized labor and environmental groups.



Candidate/Ballot Item: Amendment 1
Position: No
Reason: Amendment 1: Parental Notification of a Minor’s Termination of Pregnancy - VOTE NO If passed, this would require minors to tell their parents if they are seeking an abortion. Supporters, such as the Christian Coalition, argue that parents must be involved in their daughters’ important medical decisions and parents should know when their daughters undergo surgery. On the other hand opponents, such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), argue that seeking an abortion is a private decision and would “violate the right of privacy contained in Article 1, Section 23 of the Florida Constitution.”



Candidate/Ballot Item: Amendment 2
Position: No
Reason: Constitutional Amendments Proposed by Initiative – VOTE NO If passed, this would require citizens gathering signatures for a constitutional amendment to file their completed paperwork one year prior to the election. Right now citizens have until 3 months before the election -- that’s 9 extra months to gather petitions. This measure would decrease the amount of time petitioners have to collect the required number of signatures to get an amendment on the ballot.



Candidate/Ballot Item: Amendment 3
Position: No
Reason: The Medical Liability Claimant’s Compensation Amendment – VOTE NO If passed, this would require that patients who win a malpractice lawsuit to receive at least 70% of any award under $250,000 and 90% of any award over $250,000 malpractice lawsuits. The physicians who support the bill claim that it will prevent frivolous lawsuits and stabilize insurance premiums. Trial lawyers say this Amendment would greatly limit the ability of working people to file malpractice cases.



Candidate/Ballot Item: Amendment 4
Position: Yes
Reason: Authorizes Miami-Dade and Broward County Voters to Approve Slot Machines in Pari-mutuel Facilities – VOTE YES If passed, this would allow Miami-Dade and Broward counties to vote on whether or not to tax slot machines and give the proceeds to education. In other words, this amendment asks everyone in Florida to vote on whether or not to allow Miami-Dade and Broward residents to vote on this issue.



Candidate/Ballot Item: Amendment 5
Position: Yes
Reason: Florida Minimum Wage Amendment – VOTE YES If passed, this would raise the minimum wage in Florida by one dollar, making it $6.15 per hour. Also this amendment would index the minimum wage to the rate of inflation, to stabilize the purchasing power of the minimum wage over time. The impact of this amendment on costs and revenues of state and local governments is expected to be minimal.



Candidate/Ballot Item: Amendment 6
Position: No
Reason: Repeal of High Speed Rail Amendment – VOTE NO If passed, this would reverse an amendment that was passed by voters in 2000 to build a high speed rail line between Tampa, Orlando, and Miami. The high speed rail line is intended to cut down on harmful auto exhaust by getting people to ride the train instead of drive their car. Jeb Bush is lobbying for this amendment to repeal the rail line and environmental groups are lobbying against the repeal.



Candidate/Ballot Item: Amendment 7
Position: Yes
Reason: Patient’s Right to Know About Adverse Medical Incidents – VOTE YES If passed, this would allow patients to review the medical malpractice records of their health care providers. On top of that, it would provide that these patients’ identities be kept secret. This bill is supported by trial lawyers who claim that the amendment will prevent doctors from hiding previous incidents of malpractice from their new patients. Doctors assert that their current system of review rests on the documents remaining “privileged,” and the medical process would be threatened if the documents become public.



Candidate/Ballot Item: Amendment 8
Position: Yes
Reason: Public Protection from Repeated Medical Malpractice – VOTE YES If passed, this would block physicians who have committed three or more incidents of medical malpractice from obtaining a medical license. Trial lawyers started this amendment to help get rid of “bad” doctors and increase medical accountability. Doctors claim that the bill will scare away doctors that perform high-risk surgery and limit the availability of health care, and create “a medical wasteland.” Supporters also point out that the cost of the bill will be very minimal.