ASM Session 17 First Session

12:30 pm - ASM does not have a chair, the meeting has not yet started.
Session 17, starting with a bang

12:37 pm - Chief Justice has arrived, we have a Chair. Nice suit.

12:41 pm - We have started. I really wanna get out of here by 3 but that isn't gonna happen.

12:44 pm - Sworn in, already drunk with power.

12:50 pm - Open Forum, Polstein (candidate for leg affairs) is talking. Alcohol Licensing and Density Ordinance seems to be a big issue and he seems to have some good ideas for how to properly lobby on the issue. Probably one of the more important things that we can do this year. As we all know, The Liquor Must Flow.

12:59 pm - Lubenow endorsed Polstein. Theo Sharpe is telling me to stop padding my resume. Would any legal employer ever actually care about my tenure on student council?

1:09 pm - Manes is reading an email from Erik Paulson. We've all already read this. Wait, 'ASM is probably going to sponsor the highest profile debate of the gubernatorial race.' No. Sorry. The WPR/Wisconsin Public Television debates are the highest profile debates. Hell we won't be hosting the highest profile debate in MADISON.

1:17 pm - Martin Uraga is running for Diversity Chair. Seems like a decent guy, but barring some shocking developments, I've got Ace's back.

1:21 pm - Outgoing diversity chair - Slates are bad! Vote for Martin because he isn't on a Slate! Is it just me or is the 'slates are bad' as asinine of a voting bloc as mpower itself?

1:22 pm - WISPIRG likes Jolie! Awesome!

1:27 pm - Rep. Ingram wants us to do rules committee stuff today. I'm blognouncing my run for chair. I'd be an AWESOME chair. Vote for me (pretty sure only Max is reading this).

1:30 pm - Chair Race Begins
Jonah (Team Jacob)
Personable +
Experience ++
Approachable +
Stands up to Administration +++++
Total: 9

Brandon (Team Edward)
Personable ++
Experience +++
Approachable ++
Stands up to Administration +
total: 8

My votes are based on science!

1:43 pm - Q&A continues

1:46 pm - Rep Hanley wants to know how the candidates would determine how many gulf balls would fit in a 747. On one hand, I get that this illustrates their logic and character. On the other hand, ASM just jumped the shark (second time today).

2:25 pm - Debate continues. My one dealbreaker (possible divestment from Israel) is out of the way. Neither candidate would agitate for it. As said above, I will be voting for Zinn.

2:38 pm - Rep Manes just motioned to close the speakers list.

2:39 pm - No objections, a choir of angels sings.

2:55 pm - Chair Darby missed me on the speaker's list. Hope I get a chance to speak.

3:00 pm - Chair Darby called on Rep Ziebell a second time before calling on me.

3:02 pm - Ok, got my say. I like Jonah for standing up against the administration, I know that Brandon has too, but Jonah has done so much more publicly and I think the symbolism of the vote is important.

3:07 pm - Time to vote, it will be done via paper ballot.

3:14 pm - 20-12-1 Brandon Williams is now chair.

3:37 pm - Vice chair nominations are started, Lizotte & Johnson. Beemsterboer just 'limited' question and answer to 45 minutes. I was going to motion for 20 minutes but he beat me to it.

4:04 pm - It's 4 o'clock. Everyone has talked to both candidates. Everyone knows who they're voting for. We're still talking. My mind is turning into jell-o

4:20 pm - I spoke up, Johnson committed to not being part of any chief of staff decision that might possibly involve Tom Templeton (Tom stepped aside which is how Johnson got his seat).

4:42 pm - I endorsed Jolie. A lot of people are emphasizing Johnson's experience (which is fair, he did a tremendous amount of good for the campus) but I'm frankly kind of annoyed that people are precluding Jolie from leadership because she hasn't sat on SC before. Rep Love just summed the point up pretty well (Junger was chair his first year on SC)

4:51 pm - 20-12-1 Johnson is VC

4:52 pm - Madsen is the only candidate for secretary.

5:15 pm - Looks like meetings are gonna be on Wednesday at 6:30. I'm gonna motion to adjourn at 9:30 every Wednesday.

5:22 pm - Beemsterboer is on finance (all alone). Carl Nominates me. Other nominees Peters Manes, Vollrath and some people i've missed.

5:31 pm - live blogging will be more sporadic than usual as I have to listen to questions and answer them rather than do homework.

5:44 pm - I'm on SSFC! Absolutely inebriated with power.

6:16 pm - I'm on Rules Committee! No opposition, but still on the committee.

7:00 pm - We're still debating between Savoy and Nichols for noms.

7:16 pm - Nichols wins (15-11-1) I think

7:35 pm - Just got shot down for Rules Chair 12-10-3 (Including Ivens for Junger)

8:07 pm - Ace vs Martin

8:13 pm - Ace loses. Just gonna say, I'm feeling pretty isolated here. As ambivalent as I am towards FACES I suddenly feel a lot of empathy for them. If you want to make people feel involved, let them get involved. Brandon and Adam win, that's great. Nichols wins, that's great. Mpower supports vandenlandenberg and doesn't run against him, that's great. I lose to Tyler? I suppose, he was chair last year. His candidate statement was functionally "this is my baby" while I tried to give at least one concrete proposal, but again he was chair. Ace and Uraga? No. Contest. Ace has a resume as long as my arm focusing on intersectionality. She's lived diversity, she's active in pretty much every group focused on diversity on campus, she has been HIGHLY active in those groups. Mpower if anything represents diversity and multiculturalism to a fault. This vote was honestly a slap in the face.

I'm going to get fairly angry/critical if the 'establishment' chairs do not listen to input from their committees and unfortunately party/nonpartyline voting seems to be going in that direction.