Of all the organizations that I would think WOULD NOT close the public out of a municipal election candidate forum, I would think it would be the Unions in Sioux Falls.
Imagine our surprise when Bruce and I arrived and were told the meeting was closed to Union members and he could not film (ironically they didn’t tell him until after he setup his camera – no he didn’t turn it on).
Not only did they close the public out and our filming, they separated the council candidate questioning from the mayoral candidate questioning sessions.
It has been so bizarre this year with all these ‘closed’ candidate forums. As I told Bruce later, “What is funny is that the senior citizen surviving only on Social Security VOTE counts just the same as a Chamber Member, a Union Member, a Realtor or a Rotary Club member. They all get ONE.”
With all the talk about transparency in government, these forums are the epitome of the exact opposite. If I was one of the candidates I would have said, “As a staunch supporter of open and transparent government I will not be participating unless the public is invited to attend.”
I guess you have to belong to a special interest club these days to hear what our future elected leaders have to say.