This past Wednesday, I had the pleasure of attending the Common Cause dinner at the historic Rhodes on the Pawtuxet event hall.
Common Cause refers to itself as a “citizens advocacy group,” working on behalf of the citizens to hold power accountable. Like many nonprofits, it has a national organization and local chapters.
Common Cause has a fascinating history. It was founded in the 1970 by John W. Gardner, a Republican who worked served as Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare in Lyndon Johnson’s White House; a Republican who did as much as anyone to implement the Great Society programs. Now, his legacy lives on in a nonpartisan group that lobbies for efficient and responsive government. The national Common Cause initiatives are about campaign finance reform, governmental accountability, nonpartisan redistricting, and net neutrality.
Local chapters add local issues. Rhode Island’s Common Cause chapter also adds judicial reform on the state level, and questions of the separation of powers. For example, Common Cause RI believes that the Coastal Resources Management Council overlaps the legislative and executive branches. Common Cause RI also boasts a Brown alumna as Associate Director.
At the dinner, some awards were given out. One went to Leadership RI, who did amazing work in Central Falls. After the town went into bankruptcy, Leadership RI went in to train a new generation of leaders for the town.
The keynote speaker, though, Sanford Levinson, dominated the event. A law professor at UT Austin, he has called for a second constitutional convention. He believes that the structure of the constitution has led to gridlock. His most recent book was Framed: America’s 51 Constitutions and the Crisis of Governance.
Personally, I have a lot of questions about the possibility of another convention. For example: who would serve as delegates? How long would it take to switch from the old constitution to the new?
Even if none of the changes that Professor Levinson seeks in the system will happen, the discussion matters. One of the points of citizen groups such as Common Cause is to foster the discussion of how our society should function. Listening to all the lawyers discuss the American System on the eve of possible US default was poignant. I thank Common Cause and Professor Bill Allen for hosting me at the event.