Citizens for Lower Taxes and a Stronger Economy, Inc.

Lesley Blackner
President
Amendment 4 Campaign

Dear Ms. Blackner:

On January 11th, St. Petersburg College invited you to participate in a forum on Amendment 4. In an email to the college, you wrote that your organization would only participate in the debate if you were given veto authority over who would represent the opposing side.

Your attempt to infringe on our First Amendment right of free speech is deeply troubling. Is your position so weak that you and Ross Burnaman--the seasoned trial lawyers who wrote Amendment 4--cannot defend it in a public forum that you have not been given the opportunity to manipulate?

Ms. Blackner, in your opinion as a trial attorney, would it be appropriate for a lawyer handling a case to refuse to make arguments before a court if he or she could not pick the opposing counsel?

Perhaps you are a football fan. Would it be OK for the New York Jets to say, "sure, we will play in the AFC Championship Game, but only if the Colts don't play Peyton Manning." While I am no Peyton Manning, your request is equally bizarre.

Ms. Blackner, Amendment 4 is on the ballot for one simple reason - because you put your personal fortune behind it, and hired out-of-state petition circulators to gather signatures. You owe the voters who must decide its fate a full, fair and honest discussion of the issue.

Amendment 4 is a serious matter that deserves serious debate. St. Pete Beach's experiment in Amendment 4-style rule proves that it will destroy jobs, explode government spending, raise property taxes, and present an opening for endless, expensive legal gamesmanship.

Ms. Blackner, you claim to trust the voters. Please honor them by respecting their need to have all viewpoints aired on such an important issue.

Ryan Houck
Executive Director
Floridians for Smarter Growth