UPDATE: Mr. Enayati writes in. The BJJ received $500, not $700. And while they were aware of the rules, they were repeatedly told by the ASUC's publication advisor, Xavier Hernandez, that no rule would be broken so long as the issue was paid with from non-ASUC funds. So the letter of the law was probably broken, but not the spirit of keeping ASUC funds out of ASUC politics. Apparently the Attorney General is working to clear up the miscommunications. The BJJ is also talking to the Senators it criticized to clear up any misunderstandings.

The Berkeley Jewish Journal needs to lose its ASUC funding. They received some $700 from the ASUC Contingency Fund and have used it to whore for ASUC candidates, strictly forbidden by the ASUC Constitution so that student money isn't diverted to ASUC politics. The cover shows a Cal figure shouting 'I want you' and giving life to a Frankenstein monster with a 'ZBT' belt buckle. The other endorsements are Mr. Lafata for EVP and Mr. Patel for External, plus assorted Senate candidates. The ASUC bylaws state:

The ASUC Senate, Student Groups, or any other organization affiliated with the ASUC shall not:

1. Endorse, fund, or otherwise take action positively or negatively on partisan activities related to ASUC elections;

2. Endorse, fund, or otherwise take action positively or negatively on campaigns for propositions in ASUC elections.

It'd be one thing if this was a new publication unaware of ASUC rules. But no, the Editor-in-Chief, Robert Enayati, is clearly aware of the restrictions, but feels that playing cheap language games is enough of a loophole to see his magazine through. But declaring that 'what you will see inside is not an endorsement' does not make it so. To call them 'spotlights' of candidates who 'have all been positive and supported the Jewish community,' is a blatant attempt to pull a legal figleaf over breaking the bylaws for ASUC political machinations.

It doesn't even meet the requirements of the bylaws. ASUC publications aren't allowed to take 'negative' actions either, but the BJJ writes about Senators Liang, Hammond, and Ghori? (Who isn't a Senator. He probably means Iqbal? Or maybe Mr. Ghori was subbing in?) and urges us to 'kick them out of office.' 'All I ask is that you don't vote for any explicit hypocrites like the ones listed above.'

But the 'positive' parts are enough. If writing 'Daniel Frankenstein for President' with a glowing profile isn't an endorsement, I can't imagine what is.

I don't want Hardboiled endorsing CalSERVE candidates and I don't want the Heuristic Squelch endorsing Squelch! candidates. There's many reasons why not: it keeps publication funding from being politically motivated, it gives publications more of a voice then the average student, and so on. But most of all, it takes student money that is meant to be used for activities and groups and uses it to whore for a political candidate. I don't want my student fees being used for this.

The candidates so endorsed better hope they aren't tied to it. The bylaws state

Purchasing paid political advertising, or soliciting unpaid political advertising, in an ASUC-Sponsored Publication.

...is a disqualifiable offense. Rightly so. If they didn't ask, the BJJ should be ashamed for getting their favored candidates in massive legal trouble.Email This Post!