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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Nadine Carroll who wrote (3130)	7/4/2003 12:46:32 AM
From: LindyBill	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 793840

washingtonpost.com Affirmative Action Opponents Preparing for a Ballot Battle The polls show that a high majority of people are against AA, so I expect these measures to pass. Opponents of affirmative action, angered by a recent Supreme Court decision, are planning to launch a flurry of ballot initiatives for 2004 in presidential battleground states. The ballot actions, which conservative activist Ward Connerly will begin, will seek to ban affirmative action in Michigan and other states or localities. According to people familiar with the plans, the places being contemplated include Colorado, Missouri, the Florida cities of Orlando, Tampa and Fort Lauderdale, and Allegheny County (Pittsburgh), Pa. The ballot campaign could cause a headache for President Bush. His advisers have expressed concern that such initiatives, because they are polarizing, tend to increase voter turnout among racial minorities and other Democratic-leaning constituencies. The initiatives will be based on California's Proposition 209, which passed in 1996, and a similar one passed by Washington state voters in 1998. During the 2000 campaign, Bush was cagey about whether he supported or opposed Proposition 209 -- a maneuver that would become more difficult if the measure were on several ballots at the time he is seeking reelection. Connerly, who runs the American Civil Rights Coalition, is scheduled to announce his plans at the University of Michigan on July 8. The school's affirmative action program was the subject of last week's Supreme Court ruling allowing universities to consider race in admissions. Conservatives were upset that Bush, who had authorized a brief opposing the Michigan programs, applauded the ruling. California's Proposition 209 prohibited the state, local governments, public universities and other government entities from giving preferential treatment on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity or national origin. In 2000, the Florida Supreme Court forced Connerly to abandon a plan for a similar statewide measure in Florida. washingtonpost.com