Intel Withdraws Class Action Ballot Initiative

A big win for the little guys! This week, Intel and its big-business allies at the California Chamber of Commerce and the misleadingly-named “Civil Justice Association of California” (CJAC) withdrew their ballot initiative aimed at rolling back Californians’ rights in court. The “time wasn't right,” said Intel spokesman Chuck Mulloy.

Why such an abrupt surrender? Perhaps it was the 30,000 faxes citizens organized by the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights sent to Intel’s board of directors. Perhaps it was the sluggish fundraising. Or maybe the flurry of countermeasures filed in response, from a competing initiative enshrining the right to the class action to the “No Say, No Pay” act that would force top executives to disclose how much they pay themselves and allow their shareholders to dock their pay. Terrifying! Intel might also have been smarting from the initiative’s tendency to remind consumers of its egregiously racist advertisement. Or maybe it was simply the fact that this unpopular measure had no chance of passing.

Whatever the cause, we congratulate the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights for its success, and Californians for keeping their constitutional rights!