Candidates 2016 Pledge To Amend Results

Several weeks ago, Manasota MTA sent out the Pledge To Amend Candidate Questionnaire.  We asked candidates running for local and state offices where they stood regarding amending the U.S. Constitution to make clear that corporations and other artificial entities do not have Constitutional rights and that money is not speech.  If elected, how would they use their office to support the Movement to Amend the Constitution.

The results are in.  Drumroll please ...

Sarasota County Charter Review Board

• Arlene Sweeting .. I support amending the U.S. Constitution 
    Click to see responses
• Tom Patalano .. I support amending the U.S. Constitution
    Click to see responses
• Ray Porter .. I support amending the U.S. Constitution
    Click to see responses
• Karen Collins-Fleming .. I support amending the U.S. Constitution
    Click to see responses
• Mike Shlasko .. I support amending the U.S. Constitution
    Click to see responses

Florida State Senate, District 23

• Frank Alcock .. I support amending the U.S. Constitution
    Click to see responses

Florida State House, District 73

• James Golden .. I support amending the U.S. Constitution
    Click to see responses

North Port City Commission

• Cory Hutchinson .. I support amending the U.S. Constitution
    Click to see responses

Manatee County Commission, Districts 3, 7

• David Zaccagnino .. I support amending the U.S. Constitution
    Click to see responses

Sarasota County Charter Review Board

• Tony Sawyer .. Declined to Participate
• Donna Barcomb .. Declined to Participate
• Robert Neff .. Declined to Participate
• Pat Wayman .. Declined to Participate
• Jody Hudgins ... Declined to Participate
• David Samuel ... Declined to Participate

Florida State Senate, District 23

• Greg Steube .. Declined to Participate

Florida State Representative, Districts 70, 72, 73, 74

• Newt Wengay .. Declined to Participate
• Cori Fournier ..  Declined to Participate
• Edward James .. Declined to Participate
• Alex Miller .. Declined to Participate
• Joe Gruters .. Declined to Participate
• Julio Gonzalez .. Declined to Participate
• Manny Lopez .. Declined to Participate

Sarasota County Commission

• Fredd Atkins .. Declined to Participate
• Mike Moran .. Declined to Participate

North Port City Commission

• Vanessa Carusone .. Declined to Participate
• Cory Hutchinson .. Declined to Participate
• Christopher Hanks .. Declined to Participate
• Jacqueline Moore .. Declined to Participate
• Debbie McDowell .. Declined to Participate
• Andrew Sias .. Declined to Participate

Manatee County Commission, Districts 3, 7

• Matthew Bower .. Declined to Participate
• Stephen Jonsson .. Declined to Participate
• Betsy Benac .. Declined to Participate
• Jack Richardson .. Declined to Participate

To view candidate responses from the rest of the country, click here.

Last updated: October 5, 2016

Constitution Day in Sarasota Schools

Manasota Move To Amend participated in the annual Constitution Day activities in two public schools in Sarasota County. Jaime Canfield and Arlene Sweeting enlivened five classes of 7th to 10th grade Pine View students. Jaime reports taking them on

"a journey through the history of the struggle of various segments of our society to be considered as part of the expression We The People. From the original wording and subsequent evolution of the Constitution, through the enactment of the existing 27th Amendments and the influence of judicial activism, the presentations were designed to illustrate the need for a new 28th Amendment to the Constitution to reestablish the original intent of the expression We The People to include all of the people and exclude corporations. Additional discussions were inserted to include a second as important assertion that the malignant influence of money in our political process must be eliminated."

Later in the day, Carol Lerner and Rhana Bazzini formally introduced twenty one fourth grade students from Garden Elementary School in Venice to the U.S. Constitution. Discussion points included the purpose of the US Constitution, how it defined the structure of US government, and how it established human rights for the citizenry. Carol reports that

“the students applied this learning to writing a mock constitution for their class. Using a timeline and photographs, the students also discovered the process of amending the Constitution. The students particularly looked at the Amendments that expanded the right to vote in the United States. Using photographs representing different segments of the population (photos showing gender, race, class and ethnicity), the students sorted the photos to guess which group was able to vote at different points in US history. They were surprised to learn that only around 6% of the population, just white, male property holders, could vote when our nation was founded. They learned about the struggles, like the women's and civil rights movements, to expand the number of voters through Amendments and legislation. These young students asked outstanding, meaningful questions and were extremely excited to learn about the evolution of the U.S. Constitution.”

Our Manasota Move To Amend team is already excited about participating in Constitution Day next year. Get in touch, if you are a teacher or school administrator, in Sarasota or Manatee Counties, in a public or private school - and you're looking for an exciting Constitution Day option.