The NASS (Nat'l Assoc. of Secretaries of State) Conference is over. Jenny and I had the opportunity to speak with many secretaries -- a number of whom mentioned that they'd received calls about supporting a VVPAT resolution. Though the resolution was never floated, the issue is alive and we hope will be voted on at their February meeting. Thanks for making your calls.
One secretary told me, "the summer conference is usually about having fun and getting to know each other." There was certainly a lot of conviviality, and it was refreshing to see big-D and R secretaries sharing information and working together.
Unfortunately, much of the conviviality was paid for by vendors who do business (or would like to) with the secretaries' offices. Accenture, Diebold, DataCard, ES&S -- the names are familiar to all of us who have been concerned about practices around voting systems and statewide databases. And some of these were grand affairs -- really costly, with gourmet food and an open bar.
So, what do the vendors, excuse me, the "corporate affiliates," get for their money? Well, last night, the secretaries of state and their spouses were invited to a closed garden reception at Governor Pawlenty's mansion.
Jenny and I couldn't go, even though Common Cause had paid our conference fee of $475 each. No other public interest advocates or staff from the secretaries' offices were invited. The secretaries' children weren't even invited. Evidently the Minnesota Governor's mansion has a small garden.
You know what I'm going to say, right? Somehow, there was room to accommodate the corporate affilliates.
I'm sure Governor Pawlenty showed them a great time. However, it rained during the party. In fact, you might say that the whole affair lacked sunshine, in every way.
Let's make it a goal to shed sunshine on the activities of our secretaries of state. Those who are honest public servants will bask in the warmth. And the voters won't be excluded from the party.
