The ASUC Senate voted at its Wednesday meeting to uphold an executive order issued by ASUC President Vishalli Loomba invalidating an initiative on the 2012 ASUC general election ballot that asks students to support The Daily Californian.
At the peak of the meeting, more than 80 students — most of them Daily Cal staff members — watched as the senate debated the legality of the V.O.I.C.E. Initiative and the executive order that Loomba issued early Wednesday morning. In the end, the senate voted to keep the order in place, with four senators voting to overturn it, 14 voting to uphold it and two abstaining.
The V.O.I.C.E. Initiative asks students to pay a semesterly fee of $2 to help sustain the Daily Cal and allow it to continue enhancing its online presence. Without the funds — estimated at about $93,800 annually — Daily Cal leaders say the newspaper could lose more days of print, along with other cuts. Under Loomba’s order, the initiative will be voided.
At the senate meeting, debate centered around the controversy of approving a student fee referendum without a memorandum of understanding — an agreement with the university that would allow the Daily Cal, an independent organization, to receive funds from a student fee referendum. Loomba argued that the initiative was put on the ballot without notifying voters of the need of a memorandum and that she issued the executive order to stop a “dangerous precedent” on a UC systemwide level.
“There has been a painful lack of disclosure about what the fee entails,” Loomba said, adding that “this is not about the Daily Cal” but rather about larger policy issues.
The issue came down in the midst of voting for the election, which began on Tuesday and will last through Thursday. Loomba’s order referenced a UC policy that does not allow for the referendum process to give student fees to a nonuniversity organization.
Loomba said at the meeting that the executive order was prompted by an email she received Tuesday afternoon from Dean of Students Jonathan Poullard that said there had been a number of grievances filed against the initiative.
She added that the ASUC was in risk of legal retributions from this referendum, and the senate moved into closed session with ASUC attorney Gregory Brock to discuss the issue.
In addition, Graduate Assembly President Bahar Navab said that the executive order did influence the current voting but that it was a way to allow students to understand the issues regarding the student fee. Though most senators voted in agreement with Loomba’s actions, a few senators said the executive order overstepped Loomba’s power.
Daily Cal Editor in Chief and President Tomer Ovadia said the UC Office of the President said a memorandum would not be difficult to create and that he emphasized the importance of independence during discussions. Many Daily Cal staff members spoke about the influence the order has had on the elections thus far, limiting the democratic process for students to vote on the issue.
Furthermore, several senators expressed that the issue arose due to a lack of communication between all parties involved with the initiative about proper policy.
The senate discussed the possibility of holding a special election for a Daily Cal fee referendum in the future.
Chloe Hunt is the lead student government reporter.
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REPLYING TO GUEST AND ANYONE ELSE WHO AGREES WITH HIM/HER: ROFL!! I am not a hippie nor am I dishonest in saying “ASUC President Vishalli Loomba is a disaster as President of the UC Berkeley student body”. But Guest…you and those who would agree with you are absolute coward to not identify yourself and hide behind your computers if you really believe what I am saying is not the truth! What do you do? Hide in closets as well?
Did you just end your post by using a homophobic slur? That won’t impress anyone.
I am tickled by your misfortune, Daily Cal. I told ya that ya have to find an investor on yer own. It is offensive to see a newspaper of such a prestigious university rely on handouts. Ya get to learn business now, bubs!
how is this for a news story: on day one of voting the ballots failed to list certain SA senate candidates correctly. hmmm now doesn’t thats seem like an important story for the daily cal to run?
ASUC President Vishalli Loomba is a disaster as President of the UC Berkeley student body as she and the rest of the student Senate take orders from the University as opposed to being a truly independent student government. The University administration, represented by the Dean of Students Jonathan Pollard, and Ms. Loomba have been trying to shut down the Daily Cal for a long time because they have been subject to public scrutiny by the media such as the Daily Cal.
Loomba has learned to say the right words like “dangerous precedent” to disguise her real motives which is to suppress the media. She is disingenous to say the very least and a henchwoman for the Chancellor and the University administration. She thinks we are stupid enough to believe her as well.
As an independent student newspaper the Daily Cal has written objective critiques of the current ASUC Senate including its officers like Loomba. Loomba should have never come to Cal as her behavior displays values inconsistent with independent student thought. She does the the bidding of University hacks like Pollard.
Perhaps she would have been better suited for a more conservative campus in say San Diego as opposed to Cal whose foundation and history is grounded in the Free Speech Movement the Daily Cal represents. She certainly has no place at Cal and will go down in history as one of the worst ASUC Presidents Cal has ever had.
I think Oren “pay my court fees” Gabriel has that honor.
Go fuck yourself for your dishonesty, activist hippie. You and BAMN are the bane of society.
Why not get Dina Omar to charge that Vishalli slapped her and hit her to disqualify her from office, at least until a video surfaces which shows Dina to be the lying scum bag she is.
I would sleep with Vishalli
Why doesn’t the Daily Cal get the Judicial Council to overturn the Executive Order?
Vishalli is a Stalinist. Bow down and worship the power of government, you ignorant peons. Silence the press to protect the authority of our dear leader.
Disgusting.
actually, a stalinist would be for a government to take over of the media
If Vishalli was a stalinist then Daily Cal would become the Daily PRAVDA (Правда). But then again, the DC employs too many complete twats to know that. If you’re going to spew Ayn Rand-like insults, at least know your history. The DC must pull itself up by the bootstraps and if they have confidence in their content and a real readership then they will survive by austerity like everyone else.
The problem is that news is considered a public good. Especially for a relatively small community like Cal, many people (including those who read and simultaneously bash the DC) are willing to freeload off its good, even as they denounce attempts to maintain its financial solvency.
Nothing worse than a snot-nosed brat who prattles about bootstraps while maintaining a firm grasp on the silver spoon firmly entrenched in his ass.
The fact is that if the $2 fee doesn’t pass, Mr. let ‘em eat cake here — and all the others of his ilk — will find themselves without a newspaper. Nothing, of course, would please Birgie and *his* ilk more because there’d be no one to report on his misdeeds. Gas a few students unjustly? … Oops, but not to worry because no one’s gonna know. Shoot a few unruly others? So what, BPD will look the other way and no one’s gonna be writing about it.
Think about that the next time you’re tempted to spout your Pravda bullshit, you wet behind the ears little punk. Pissed off? Yeah, because I remember People’s Park and the University’s attempts to shut down the reporting of it. I was there when the tear gas was tossed at PK and the demonstrations against Vietnam. I remember the struggles those who came before you had so YOU could piss on the voice which prevented even more abuse than that which took place.
WE left you a hellofa lot better place than we had. Will you do the same for those who follow you? No, it doesn’t appear that you will. Proud of yourself, you little shit?
Because there aren’t 41 other student-run publications on campus that also try to do a public service…
Those student-publications generally cover more niche issues, such as national politics, minority interests, academic interests, scholarly journals, etc.
Only the Daily Cal gives campus, Berkeley, and student-specific news coverage.
That is not to say that the other 41 publications aren’t valuable. Just that the Daily Cal has a unique, and I would argue, and integral role for our campus.
Personally, I would find it embarrassing that an elite university such as ours would not have a campus newspaper, and would deprive the campus population access to a campus coverage.
Do you think the DC has been doing a great job of giving coverage? Anybody else notice the blatant propaganda they have been shelling out this past week? “Abstaining” from an endorsement on VOICE while in the same paper THE FRONT FUCKING PAGE IS BLANK.
You all suck. Get over yourselves.
DC is not a campus newspaper.
cool story you old fart
An incoherent rant from a geriatric hippie of the ’60s.
Mr. Living in the 60′s, here’s an idea: you pay for the Daily Cal.
I’m a fricking liberal in the real world, but even I see the absurdity in the Daily Cal. It begs students for money in Sproul! It is pathetic and not befitting of Cal’s greatness. If they are truly made of Cal students, then they would be seeking out investors and new avenues, and not demanding illegal handouts.
Real Journalist are ethical truth seekers, they chose to put aside their own prejudices and if necessary risk their lives to get the truth and report it to the thankful and thankless.
I grew up in the midwest during the 50′s and 60′s, our teachers who were raised during a different era, taught us that good journalist and freedom of the press were necessary for a true democracy.
[The senate discussed the possibility of holding a special election for a Daily Cal fee referendum in the future.]
No, please don’t waste more money on the Daily Cal, which churns out biased articles on a daily basis.
PLEASE CHOOSE A LESS UNFLATTERING PICTURE FOR ASUC PRESIDENT VISHLLI.
YOU DON’T HELP YOUR CASE IF YOU PORTRAY OPPONENTS UNFAIRLY AND THEN ASK FOR MORE MONEY TO SOLVE YOUR OWN PROBLEMS.
YOU DON”T HELP YOURS BY SHOUTING.
I CANNOT CONTROL THE VOLUME OF MY VOICE
The party system at this school is so corrupt. It is as bad if not worse than the national party system. I have many friends in both parties, but as an outgoing senior, all I can say is: never vote for Student Action or CalServe. The audacity of the corruption shown by this action is mind-boggling.
VOTE STUDENTS FOR A DEMOCRATIC UNIVERSITY! “EndorsementRetribution” is articulating exactly why they exist — for the ASUC to matter we need a new kind of politics at Cal.
This is an extremely unflattering choice of photo for President Vishalli. I can’t help but doubt this wasn’t done on purpose.
It looks fine to me?
“fine”? Don’t you know that the journalist/editor decided on practically hundreds of photos taken that night to pick this one? What on earth looks “fine” about this?
-People are smiling, jeering, angry or otherwise not looking attentive at what she’s saying which doesn’t speak well to her authority or effectiveness. Not exactly unbias.
-Her fingers are pointing down – not an incredibly optimistic pose, further invites the idea that she is over-expressing her authority pointing down to someone. Also implies the idea of her looking down at people or trying to displace blame.
- If they could have picked a more rushed, disheveled or uncomposed picture of Vishalli I would be surprised.
Sorry if you don’t notice the implications of a single photo, mass media soaking sponge
This is so deeply hilarious. You are on the Daily Cal website RIGHT NOW. Surely such a use of time is not befitting of your personal greatness?
You made a fatal error. You made a sound argument and then ended it with an extremely condescending attitude, therefore voiding any consideration people might have for your opinions.