GENERAL EDUCATION SCENARIOS
2-20 GENERAL EDUCATION 1
Major Howard Augustine of the City of Forman has a dilemma: should he support the passage of the Community Preservation Act in his city and, if so, for what purposes?
The Mayor, presently serving in his second term, has been in the midst of a longstanding balancing act. Somehow or other he has remained a close ally of organized labor despite the fact that his new wife, Patricia Flanagan – the heir to a large mayonnaise fortune – is an avid environmentalist who has contributed freely from her fortune to groups which have worked to stop some of the development which the Mayor has been encouraging. Ms. Flanagan, who has insisted upon keeping her own name, is very independent of the Mayor in most every way. The Mayor tolerates her conduct, given that her fortune allows him to enjoy a lavish lifestyle, as well as continue his public service.
The passage of the CPA is a very important issue given that Freddy’s Farm, a landmark on the outskirts of the city, is under agreement to a developer who intends to construct a biotech park.
One of the few ways for the city to prevent the farm from being developed is to match the purchase price. The town has a right of first refusal. One of the options for doing so is to pass the Community Preservation Act, which would provide for a small property tax surcharge with the receipts there from being matched by the state. These dollars are earmarked for affordable housing, historic preservation or the acquisition of open space. Housing has become an
important state-wide issue but the housing crisis is especially acute in Forman given that teachers, firefighters, police officers, nurses and many other public employees can no longer afford to live in the city. Some have also suggested that the city has a moral obligation to house those displaced by hurricanes and other natural disasters.
Should the Mayor support the CPA in the upcoming municipal referendum or work against it hoping that the Biotech park will provide “good jobs at good wages”? If he does support the CPA, how should he allocate the proceeds percentage-wise to the three options available (housing; historic preservation and open space)? Keep in mind, in your discussions, that the Mayor is likely to seek reelection to a third term and would be appreciative of the support of organized labor – both the building trades and public employees. Furthermore, keep in mind that Patricia Flanagan is his wife and financial benefactor.
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2-21 GENERAL EDUCATION 2A
This is a simple question worthy of extensive debate among the citizens of your community on Saturday evening before lights out. Each community will select a spokesman to report at the Gen. Ed lecture to be held on Sunday morning. Towns and cities will assemble separately as called for in the program book.
Should the City switch from a popularly-elected Mayor to a City Manager appointed by the City Council?
Cities with a council-manager form of government vest most executive power and day-to-day administrative operations in the hands of a manager, appointed by the City Council. Typically, he or she has an extensive background in public administration and urban planning. The manager is a professional who is theoretically unbiased by party affiliation or other special interests. This nonpartisan aspect is probably the greatest asset and weakness of the council-manager form of government. The manager is not directly accountable to the voting public, but is thus insulated from the pressures and corruption that often come with elected office. Furthermore, the manager is responsible to the City Council, who are in turn elected by the public. A mayor is retained in this system as the presiding officer of the City Council, but typically has few other powers.
For more information, including which cities in Massachusetts have manager systems, see section 3-6, City Government on p.47 of the Program Book.
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2-22 GENERAL EDUCATION 2B
This is a simple question worthy of extensive debate among the citizens of your community on Saturday evening before lights out. Each community will select a spokesman to report at the General Education lecture to be held on Sunday morning. Towns and cities will assemble separately as called for in the program book.
Should the Town abandon its long-standing town meeting, elect a town council and appoint a town manager?
Most towns with a manager still retain a town meeting in which citizens vote on budgets, elected officials, and various issues regarding education, planning, etc. The primary difference in a manager form of government is that most administrative responsibilities are bestowed upon a manager. Typically he or she has an extensive background in public administration and urban planning and is appointed by the Board of Selectmen. The manager is a professional who is theoretically unbiased by party affiliation or other special interests. This nonpartisan aspect is probably the greatest asset and weakness of the town manager form of government. The manager is not directly accountable to the voting public, but is thus insulated from the pressures and corruption that often come with elected office. Furthermore, the manager is responsible to the Board of Selectmen, who are in turn elected
by the public.
For more information, including which towns in Massachusetts have manager systems, see section 3-7, Town Government on p.48 of the Program Book.
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2-23 GENERAL EDUCATION 3
Your consulting company – ALBS Associates – has been retained by a Democratic nominee for Congress in a conservative, mostly Catholic, district in the Northeast. This is one of those Congressional districts filled with “Reagan Democrats.” Historically, the District voted for Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Carter, Reagan, Bush, Clinton and then Bush. Your candidate, who is well educated and well financed, has been a major fund-raiser for the Democratic Party. He has met former President Clinton on a number of occasions. He has raised money for President Clinton. The President has now offered toattend a major fund-raiser In the district to benefit your candidate’s campaign and also to campaign publicly in a high profile/perfect for television coverage setting.
This is the type of opportunity at which most candidates would salivate. Since leaving office, the President’s popularity has wavered. The pardons scandal seems to fester, as do allegations of his marital infidelity. Many question whether he and his wife, now a U.S. Senator, even live together, calling theirs a “marriage of convenience”. The “character” issue is especially important to older Catholic women who comprise a goodly percentage of regular Democratic voters in this district. Despite all his problems, the former President remains the most popular Democrat in the country.
Advise your candidate – one way or the other – as to whether to accept the former President’s invitation to campaign in the district or to respectfully decline. What if his wife, Senator Hillary Clinton makes the same offer?
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2-24 GENERAL EDUCATION 4
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court has ruled that our State Constitution, written by John Adams, cannot be interpreted to prohibit the marriage of two consenting adults of the same gender. You are a candidate for the State Legislature and a weekly communicant at a large Roman Catholic Church in the heart of the legislative district. Like many, you question some of the church’s teachings privately and around the kitchen table, but not in open discussion. Your brother-in-law is gay. His sister, your wife, thinks you are a hypocrite for questioning the church’s teachings with respect to homosexuality but not doing so publicly. When the question is asked at the First Candidates Night,
“Would you vote to amend the Massachusetts Constitution to limit marriage to a man and a woman?”, how will you respond? Is this a question of civic liberties or one of simple politics? What is an appropriate separation of church and state?