Denver
VOTER
League of Women Voters of Denver
www.LWVDenver.org
[email protected]
March 2016
1980 Dahlia Street
Denver, CO 80220
Continue our Discussion of
Money in Politics
March Briefings
End of Life Options Act
On March 21, League of Women Voters of Denver will
present a screening of PAY 2 PLAY, a film about the corrupting influence of money in politics. As you know we
have been looking at this topic for some time now and
the League should approve an update of our National
position at National Convention in June. This movie
should be a fun way to contemplate it again. Ask friends
and neighbors to come, too.
Monday, March 7
Green Room (note room change)
5:30 p.m. Social Time/Announcements
6:00 - 7:30 p.m. Program
Pay to Play Movie Event
PAY 2 PLAY (P2P) follows filmmaker John Ennis’ quest to
find a way out from under a pay-to-play system and features Robert Reich, Lawrence Lessig, Marianne Williamson, Noam Chomsky, Van Jones, John Nichols, Thom
Hartmann and many others. Ennis defines this system as
the cycle in which politicians reward their donors with
even larger sums from the public treasury — through
contracts, jobs, tax cuts, and deregulation. P2P picks up
where Ennis left off in his last film FREE FOR ALL, after his
investigation into election fraud in Ohio led him to establish Video the Vote to watch the polls on Election Day.
Ennis has recognized that by Election Day, so much has
already happened to decide which candidates are or are
not on the ballot, the result is surprisingly undemocratic.
Driven by his need to make the world better for his
newborn daughter to inherit, Ennis determined to study
our road to elected office to find a way we can get out
from under the Pay 2 Play system.
PARTNERS:
American Family Voices, Center for Media and Democracy, Color of Change, Common Cause, Democracy For
America, Democracy Initiative, Free Speech For People,
Global Exchange/Elect Democracy, Money Out Voters
In, Move To Amend, Public Campaign, Public Citizen,
Phone: 303-321-7571
Fax: 303-320-8557
Monday, March 21
McCollum Room
5:30 p.m. Social Time/Announcements
6:00 - 7:30 p.m. Movie
Rebuild The Dream, Represent US, ReThink Media, Rock
The Vote, Rootstrikers and Stamp Stampede
FILMMAKER BIO:
John Wellington Ennis, Director / Producer
John Wellington Ennis is a filmmaker, activist, and father.
His previous films are FREE FOR ALL!: One Dude’s Quest to
Save Democracy and the Upright Citizens Brigade‘s Wild Girls
Gone, starring Amy Poehler. Ennis has written for The
Huffington Post, The Onion, and Melrose
& Fairfax. He is a co-founder of Video
the Vote, a citizen journalism project
covering election problems, and is on the
board of Public Interest Pictures. He attended the film schools at New York
University and University of Southern
California and has taught documentary
filmmaking at UCLA Extension.
Denver VOTER, March 2016
2
End of Life Options Act
Volume 2016, Issue #3
Periodicals postage paid
at Denver, Colorado
Denver VOTER
(USPS 019817)
Published twice in
September and monthly
October through June by:
LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS
OF DENVER
1980 Dahlia Street
Denver, CO 80220
303-321-7571
Fax: 303-320-8557
www.LWVDenver.org
[email protected]
A one-year subscription is included
in annual membership dues.
Monday, March 7
5:30 p.m. Social Time/Announcements
6:00 - 7:30 p.m. Program
Green Room*
Montview Presbyterian Church
The End of Life Options Act (HB 1054 and SB 25) was introduced in this legislative session in early February. These bills address an important question: does
an individual have a legal right to request, and do physicians have a legal right to
provide to the patient, a means to hasten the end of life in the situation of terminal illness? After a hearing in Senate State Affairs Committee, SB 25 was PI’d
(postponed indefinitely) on a 3-2 vote. HB 1054 passed the House Judiciary
Committee on a 6-5 vote. Interestingly, both these votes followed party lines.
As we go to print, we do not have a date for the House debate.
The issue is indeed controversial and the League of Women Voters does not
have positions to support or oppose it. However, there is much interest in the
issue, and Representative Lois Court of Denver, one of the House sponsors,
has agreed to explain the details of the bill and its journey through the legislature at this educational-only briefing.
Director of Organization
Marge Fisch
*The Green Room is a new location for us since the McCollum Room is in use
by the church on the first Mondays of the month. It is directly above the
McCollum Room on the second floor.
Director of Program
Marty Sloven
Pay to Play Movie Event
Director of Communications
Pearlanne Zelarney
Secretary
Carol Andersen
Treasurer
Catherine Decker
Denver VOTER Editor
Pearlanne Zelarney
Denver VOTER Assistant Editor
Marty Sloven
Office Manager
Heather Colliander
Postmaster, please send
address changes to:
Denver VOTER
LWV Denver
1980 Dahlia Street
Denver, CO 80220
Monday, March 21
5:30 p.m. Social Time/Announcements
6:00 - 7:30 p.m. Movie
McCollum Room
Montview Presbyterian Church
The League’s Position
Statement of Position on Campaign Finance, as announced by National Board,
January 1974 and revised March 1982:
The League of Women Voters of the
United States believes that the methods
of financing political campaigns should
ensure the public’s right to know, combat corruption and undue influence, enable candidates to compete more equitably for public office and allow maximum
citizen participation in the political process.
This position is applicable to all federal
campaigns for public office — presidential and congressional, primaries as well
as general elections. It also may be applied to state and local campaigns.
3
Denver VOTER, March 2016
Did you see this in the HUB on February 11?
Participate in Your Precinct Caucus and
Be a Part of Super Tuesday
On Tuesday, March 1at 7:00 p.m. Colorado will be one of 15 U.S. states and territories that will participate in Super Tuesday – the mega-media date when most states hold primary elections or state
caucuses to determine their preference for presidential candidates and other national and state offices.
In Colorado that means precinct caucuses. Unlike other states who conduct primary elections, Colorado conducts precinct caucuses — a grassroots process that give voters the opportunity to meet in
groups to advocate and vote for political candidates that will represent them in the 2016 election.
Caucuses used to be held in homes or small community halls, but today’s events are usually held in
larger places to accommodate more participants. At a caucus, participants:

Speak on behalf of their favorite candidates

Vote for their favorites

Elect delegates to the next political countywide Assemblies and Convention

They also discuss and consider resolutions to be included in the party’s platforms
Who can attend? Anyone who is a registered voter in the Democrat or Republican Party. While there
are other political parties in Colorado, the Republican and Democratic parties are designated “major
parties” based on the number of votes each party received in the 2014 election. Also, Colorado does
not allow unaffiliated (independent) voters to participate in a caucus. If you did not register with a political party by January 4, 2016, you can’t participate, but may attend.
This year there’s another caveat. While Democrats will continue to conduct their presidential candidate polls, the Colorado Republican party will not. The reason? The GOP requires that the Republican
candidate who wins the caucus must be supported by the delegates at the GOP national convention.
But by the time delegates attend the national convention, their candidate may have dropped out of the
competition. By not participating in a presidential poll at the March 1 caucus, Republican delegates
have the freedom to support any candidate at the GOP national event. The Colorado Republican caucus will, however, still vote for and select candidates for other positions and delegates to attend their
state assemblies and convention.
So participate in this democratic process. It’s an exciting election year and your vote matters. To find
your precinct number and caucus location contact these political parties:
 The Democratic Party of Denver: denverdemocrats.org, [email protected] or
303-830-8242

The Denver Republican Party: denvergop.org or 303-782-9555
Marlu Burkamp
Communications Coordinator
League of Women Voters of Arapahoe and Douglas Counties
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Denver VOTER, March 2016
Unit Meetings: A place for lively conversation!
Buffalo
Mon., Mar. 14, 5:30 p.m.
Location to be determined
Contact Joan Friend for information
303-596-1022 or [email protected]
Andrea Mitchell
36 S. Garfield St.
303-277-0527
2360 S. Milwaukee Street
303-758-2137
Mon., Mar., 21, 5:30 p.m.
Attend Pay-to-Play Movie Event
Heritage
Thu., Mar. 24, 10:30 a.m.
Regular meeting place:
Heritage Club
2020 S. Monroe St.
For info call Betsy Kester
303-756-4857
Cheesman
Tue., Mar. 8, 9:15 a.m.
Susan Stark
310 Bellaire St.
303-333-4094
Tue., Mar. 22, 9:15 a.m.
Cindy Sestrich
1144 Lafayette St.
303-832-6739
Highland/Woodbury
Wed., Mar. 2, 5:45 p.m.
West 29th Restaurant and Bar
5560 West 29th Ave
Contact Sally Augden for information
303-455-5800
Cherrington
Thu., March 10, 1:00 p.m.
Marcia Verba
910 S. Clayton Way
303-629-0614
Thu., March 24, 1:00 p.m.
Observatory
Tue., Mar. 8, 7:00 p.m.
Bev Bridges
St. Vrain
Wed., Mar. 23, 9:15 a.m.
Joan Gendreau
4570 E. Yale Ave., #703
303-756-0842
Whiteman
Tue., Mar. 8, 9:15 a.m.
Connie Bean
5138 South Perry
303-798-0256
Tue., Mar. 22, 9:15 a.m.
Peggy Pitchford
2661 S Zurich Court
303-638-5534
March Calendar
Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed Thu
Fri
Sat
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5
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25
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27
28
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31
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8
21
End of Life Options Briefing, 5:30 p.m.
Green Room
Board Meeting, League Office, 3:30 p.m.
Pay to Play Movie Event, 5:30 p.m.
McCollum Room
Spring Break Office Hours
Heather will be out of the office from Monday March 28 —
April 5. There will be coverage of the phones and emails.
Timing of Evening Briefings
There seems to be confusion about the timing of the evening briefings. We gather around 5:30 p.m. for some
social time. We begin any announcements in time to begin the meat of the briefing no later than 6:00 p.m. The
program should be an hour or more if needed, ending questions and the evening no later than 7:30. Please be
prepared to stay until 7:30 p.m.
Marty Sloven
Director of Program
Denver VOTER, March 2016
5
Council 2016
The League of Women Voters of Colorado Council 2016 will convene on Saturday, May 21 at
12:30 p.m. and will conclude on Sunday, May 22 at noon in Montrose Colorado. All delegates are
invited to come early for a networking lunch on Saturday from 11:00 a.m. until noon. The Denver League has two voting delegates, but others may attend as observers. Registration is $45,
which includes Saturday lunch and dinner and Sunday breakfast. Hotel rooms have been reserved
at the Holiday Inn Express in Montrose. You may reserve a room by calling 970-240-1800 or 1800-550-9252. Be sure to mention the League of Women Voters of Colorado to receive the
discounted rate of $99/night plus tax for a room with two queen beds. Call the office if you are
interested in attending.
In Memoriam
Our sympathies to Alice Bakemeier, a member of the Cheesman unit, on the loss of her
husband in February.
Members, offer this application to friends and neighbors!
League of Women Voters of Denver
JOIN LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS
1980 Dahlia Street
Denver, CO 80220-1239
NOT FOR WOMEN ONLY!
Name(s) _______________________________________________________________ Email ________________________________
Address _______________________________________________ City _________________________ Zip ___________________
Phone (H) ________________________________ (W) ____________________________ (C) ____________________________
ANNUAL DUES:
Regular member................................................................................
(for Denver, State &
National)
Two residing at same address .......................................................
$90.00
Sustaining member ..........................................................................
$125.00
Two sustaining members at same address ................................
$185.00
Student ...............................................................................................
$25.00
CONTRIBUTIONS:
$60.00
To LWV Denver ...............................................................................
$ ___________________
To Dues Assistance Fund ..............................................................
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Make check payable to LWV Denver. (Dues are not tax-deductible. Tax-deductible contributions may be made by separate check to LWVD Education Fund.)
THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!
TOTAL ENCLOSED $ _______________________________
League of Women Voters of Denver
1980 Dahlia Street
Denver, CO 80220-1239
Briefing On Homelessness
with Tom Luehr, Director of the St Francis Center;
Jackie Bell of DPS's Homeless Education Network;
and member, Susan Stark, with an update on homelessness and the elderly.
Members Peggy Pitchford, Barbara Ann Ford and
Marge Fisch prepare for the briefing by reviewing
the briefing materials.
Periodical Postage
Paid in Denver