[Discussion] Duties and term of the Whip

[CmdrWilkens]

As mentioned elsewhere this thread is to discuss what EXACTLY the Whip will do and the exact term limits and such. Please discuss:

[The Yosemite Bear]

well I thought it was pretty basic, get the word out.

although we may want to institue an inactive list too.

[Stuart Mackey]

1.)The Whip would be responsible for organising new member nominations, voting, Moderator notification/implementation and subsequent announcement.

2.) The Whip would also ensure that other polls and bussiness are properly organised, notified and presented.

3.) It should be the duties of the Whip to ensure that members receive notification of all upcomeing Senate bussiness, a brief description, and dates of completion of that bussiness.


Thats my two cents for now. I am sure I will think of other things after this is posted.

[CmdrWilkens]

The point I wanted to make of this thread is that we had talked about the whip as a sort of deputy-Chancellor. That is moreso the avenue I wanted to explore. Obviously the whip would be required to alert all Senate members as to new polls and other pressing Senate buisness (again the usergorup mail function works well for this). The big issue is whether we want the whip to be that alternate to the Chancellor or not.

Personally I think the post would be perfect to allow for someone other than Rob to keep an eye on this group and ensure it stays coherent and up to date especially in regards to policies and procedures. However if we are going to do so then I think the term ought to be a limited one if only to ensure the whip continues to do his or her job. My recommendation is thus that we have a 9 month term (unlimited number of terms) where the whip serves both to alerte members to votes (and organizes them) and serves in the capacity of the Chancellor in his or her absence (save only that the Whip would retain voting rights outside of a tie).

[Sonnenburg]

I think sticking with the basics of alerting people would be good for now.

[CmdrWilkens]

It really does come down to that, obviously the whip alerts folks but then its simply a matter of whether the whip is also vice chancellor or not.

Also is anyone else thinking about term limits or is the post until resignation, etc.

[Coyote]

Alert people for votes, and basically shepherd said votes/polls through to their completion.

[Spyder]

Which is pretty much exactly what you're doing now, except in a slightly more official manner.

[Publius]

As far as terms are concerned, why not merely at the Senate's pleasure? No need for more red tape or rubberstamp votes. If the Senate is generally satisfied with the whip's performance, there is no real need for a vote to re-confirm him or her in office. If the Senate is generally displeased -- enough to make a vote less than a sure thing -- then a vote of confidence is a natural result. This would keep things simple and suitably clutter-free.

[CmdrWilkens]

Honestly at the pleasure of the senate probably would work best and, again I think we all agree that alerting folks is the biggest part of the duties. My biggest uncertainty that I'd like to leave open is whether or not the Whip should function vice-Chancellor in the Chancellor's abscebce. We all know that Rob's schedule is quirky to say the least and there should be someone to hold his duties down. Obviously there are those with power to do so on an ad hoc basis but I think it would be worthwhile for the senate to elect someone to that position. However that said I don't want to assume the whip would be that post but I'd like to hear everyone's thoughts on the matter.

[Chris OFarrell]

Not a bad idea, though I think Rob should post in the forum publicly delegating the authority until as such time he takes it back up again. Though you could have Mike in turn granting such authority if Rob just vanishes for a time or something without warning or post...

[Coyote]

Since Rob's schedule, by necessity, will be secret due to the nature of his work, it should just be understood that in the Chancellor's absecnce, duty will fall automatically to the Whip without need for formality.

[Spyder]

The powers of the whip extend as far as the rest of the senate are willing to follow.

What I would suggest is that the whip carry out whatever policies they feel are necessary to keep the senate floor running smoothly and if senators have any issues with the way things are happening then issues can be raised as necessary.

First thing: It's in the interest of the senate that people take the initiative.
Second thing: Unless we're going to grant the whip access to his/her own militia, we can't lose anything by the whip carrying out vice chancellor responsibilities as anything put forward that's outside the will of the senate probably isn't going to get followed anyway.