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League of Women Voters urges "Vote No"

Be Careful What You Wish For

"Rick Green's snapshot of the forces pushing the constitutional convention question was right on target [Connecticut section, Sept. 23, "Injecting Chaos Into Democracy"].

The League of Women Voters of Connecticut agrees with him. Will those special interest groups — pressing voters to approve a constitutional convention — present balanced views of their hot-button issues? Will they tell Connecticut voters what the long-term financial consequences of initiative and referendum could be? We doubt it.

 We're believers in the old "if it's not broken" adage. The league believes that the Connecticut Constitution works well as our state's basic framework of representative government. We can't think of any serious governance issues that justify the time, expense and bluster of a constitutional convention where every issue — no matter how outlandish — would be fair game.

If voters are disillusioned with the actions of our General Assembly, they should speak up — express their views to their state representatives and state senators, or elect new legislators. The league urges Connecticut voters to say no in November to a constitutional convention.

Jara Burnett, President, League of Women Voters of Connecticut , Hamden
Letter to the Editor: Hartford Courant, September 28, 2008