Westlund finishes up obligations on Rules Committee

DENVER--State Treasurer candidate and State Sen. Ben Westlund (D-Tumalo) said Monday that one of the results of his meetings with the Democratic National Convention Rules Committee was a commission that will be reviewing the current primary and caucus nomination process.

“The question really is do these caucuses represent ‘One person, one vote,’ because these caucuses are really two to three percent of the population awarding delegates,” Westlund said.

According to Westlund, a commission of 35 will begin to review the effectiveness of the caucuses starting right after the election in November. Westlund, who was serving on the Rules Committee at the personal request of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama (D-Ill.), said the decision was the biggest policy change the committee decided on during their weekend meetings. Westlund said that the results of the meetings were critical, but the process was not thoroughly engaging.

“It’s as boring as watching paint dry, but it is as important as building the house,” Westlund said. “It’s important to lay out policy and procedure; it’s just not very stimulating in terms of debate.”

Westlund’s duties at the Rules committee ended this weekend, but he still plans to spend the week at the convention with the rest of the Oregon delegation on the floor, and he said he’s looking forward to the experience of getting to enjoy the rest of the week.

“It’s so hectic and a logistical nightmare ahead of you every day,” Westlund said. “But a big part of this is the fraternity of it.”