idriganhiI0
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Tuesday, February 19,2008
michigandaily.com
CAMPAIGN 2008
Dems
debate
delegate
seating
Democratic National Party
has suggested that Michigan
hold caucuses to seat delegates
By EMILY BARTON
Daily News Editor
With presidential candidates Barack Obama and
Hillary Clinton neck and neck in the delegate count,
the Democratic National Committee has suggested
that Michigan hold a caucus to ensure that the state's
128 delegates would be seated at the Democratic
National Convention this summer. Such a move would
void the Michigan primary, which Clinton won Jan.
15.
After Michigan went against party rules by mov-
ing its primary to Feb. 5 - a move designed to gar-
ner more attention in the nominating process - the
Democratic National Party stripped the state of all its
delegates.
obama and many other candidates took their
names off the ballot to protest Michigan's decision to
move its primary ahead of other states without per-
mission.
Michigan Democratic Party Chairman Mark
Brewer said he does not support holding another con-
test and hopes to negotiate with Clinton and Obama
as well as the DNC to find a solution and seat the del-
egates.
Clinton has pushed for the delegates to be seated
without a new election.
obama's campaign said that view undermines the
role of voters - or non-voters - who didn't know the
primary results would count.
"The Clinton campaign just said they have two
options for trying to win the nomination: attempt to
have superdelegates overturn the will of the Demo-
cratic voters or change the rules they agreed to at the
eleventh hour in order to seat nonexistent delegates
from Florida and Michigan," said David Plouffe,
Obama's campaign manager.
If all the delegates are seated, 73 would be commit-
ted to Clinton and 55 would be uncommitted, mean-
ing the delegates will not have pledged their support
to any particular candidate.
See DELEGATES, Page 7
Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) spoke yesterday at Hutchins Hall, saying that the United States should not resort to torturing terrorism suspects in order to protect the nation's security.
LeVin: Terrorism doesn't juStify torture
Senator says tactics
set counterterrorism
efforts back
By JILLIAN BERMAN
Daily StaffReporter
The Bush administration has often
defended the use of controversial
interrogation techniques as necessary
in the war on terrorism.
In a lecture sponsored by the, Law
School yesterday, Sen. Carl Levin
(D-Mich.) said those tactics do more
to hurt the nation's counterterrorism
efforts than they do to help it.
The lecture, "Torture, the Rule of
Law, and American Security," was part
of the Law School's International Law
Workshop series. The talk, which took
place in Hutchins Hall, drew about 80
students, faculty and Ann Arbor resi-
dents.
Levin, who is the chairman of the
Senate's Armed Services Committee,
called the actions of the Bush admin-
istration in Iraq "unilateral" and
"reckless" and called upon the U.S. to
abolish practices of torture so it can
regain the support of other countries
and their citizens.
"No amount of military power in
the world can remedy that loss of sup-
port," Levin said.
Levin also said the moral impli-
cations of torture oppose American
values. He said it's important for
Americans to remember that oppos-
ing torture is not being "soft on terror-
ism." He said the use of torture hinders
efforts to keep the United States safe.
"It's what we do in the name of secu-
rity that keeps the U.S. less secure,"
Levin said.
LSA senior Michael Radtke Jr., who
attended the lecture, agreed with the
senator's position on the ethics of tor-
ture.
"I would hope that we would give
them the rights that we cherish so
dearly," he said. "We're not asking to
let them off. We just want due pro-
cess."
Levin also touched on the issue of
stem cell research, of which he is an
avid supporter. He called the lack of
federal funding for stem cell research
"unconscionable" and urged Michigan
residents to push for a more stem cell-
friendly policy at the state level.
LSA sophomore Josh Strazanac, co-
chair of the new student group Stu-
dents for Levin, said he was excited to
hear the senator speak because of his
candidness and honesty, regardless of
the time of year.
"What's reallyneat aboutcCarlLevin
is that even in a time when an election
is coming up, he is willing to speak on
controversial issues," he said.
Levin, the longest-serving Michi-
gan senator in the state's history, is up
for reelection in November. He's held
his post since 1979.
Law student Chas Ballew said that
while he found the lecture interest-
ing, he wished its topics were better
integrated into the Law School cur-
riculum.
"I think the issues that Senator
Levin discussed are really important
issues, but practically, from a per-
spective of a future attorney, it's dif-
ficult to see how we can directly have
an impact on these issues of national
security and ethical treatment of our
opponents," he said. "I hope they
develop more opportunities to learn
about this at the Law School."
Virginia Gordon, the assistant dean
for international affairs at the Law
School, said the the speaker series
is designed to educate students on
important matters relating to foreign
legal policy.
The senator's appearance coincides
with efforts by Students for Levin to
ensure his name appears on the bal-
lot for the upcoming election. Despite
the senator's incumbency, state law
requires that he receive 15,000 signa-
tures in order to appear on the ballot.
UNIVERSITY RESEARCH
Africa research center to open in July
THE AUTHOR SPEAKS
Program, along with
Coleman's upcoming
trip, shows new'U'
focus on Africa
By CHARLES GREGG-GEIST
Daily StaffReporter
In another move representing
the University's increased focus on
Africa, University President Mary
Sue Coleman announced at last
week's Board of Regents meeting
that the University would create a
new African Studies Center in July.
Coleman will spend two weeks in
Africa this month developing joint
programs with African institutions.
The new center, which would be
the 17thinternational and areastud-
ies center under the supervision of
the University's International Insti-
tute, aims to foster collaboration
between the more than 120 Uni-
versity faculty members currently
doingresearchrelatedtoAfrica,said
Kelly Askew, an associate professor
of Afroamerican and African Stud-
ies who will be the center's interim
director when it launches.
Askew said the center will build
heavily on the resources and initia-
tives currently available through
the Center for Afroamerican and
African Studies, which was created
38 years ago.
The new center differs from
CAASbecause itfocusesonresearch
and does not offer classes. CAAS, a
department within the College of
Literature, Science and the Arts,
offers classes for students and
teaching positions for faculty.
Mark Tessler, director of the
International Institute, said he
hopes the ASC will be able to unite
Africanists across campus, includ-
ing those in graduate and profes-
sional schools.
Tessler helped take inventory of
the research that the University's
faculty already conducts. He said
See CENTER, Page 8
VOTER REGISTRATION
Voter outreach group to increase efforts
Group wants help from
University to reach
more students for
Nov. election
By EMILYBARTON
Daily News Editor
Engineering senior Brian Hick-
ner was minding his own business,
walking through campus when
a Voice Your Vote representative
seemingly came out of nowhere and
blocked his way.
"They got me on the Diag," he
said.
Hicker is just one of many stu-
dents who claims to have had a voter
registration form shoved in front of
him by the voter-registering group
Voice Your Vote, an entirely student-
run organization.
But this year, that might change.
LSA junior Jonathon Kendall,
co-chair of Voice your Vote, said the
group has been working with Uni-
versity administrators to gain more
access to residence halls and other
University buildings.
Kendall said he and his fellow
co-chair LSA senior Hannah Fish-
man realized after registering stu-
dents for the 2008 midterm election
that they would need more support
from the University. They met with
University officials last semester to
figure out how the University could
help the voter registration efforts.
"I reallyhope they'llwork withus
more in the future," Fishman said.
The group is currently funded
by the Michigan Student Assembly
and outside donations. Fishman said
she doesn't think that will change if
the University supports Voice Your
Vote.
"We still want to be able to run
a grassroots campaign and do our
own thing as well," she said.
Kendall and Fishman said they
hope to train resident advisors to
register students to vote in each of
See GROUP, Page 8
Karyna McGlynn, a University alum and English Professor. at Washtenaw Com-
munity College, did a poetry reading for a crowd in Shaman Drum Bookshop.
McGlynn, was promoting her recently published book, "Scorpionica," which
went on sale earlier this week.
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