Of the next Revolution?
Oliver Willis (Occupation: Toole) writes that his own state of Maryland has passed a National Popular Vote bill, which puts them on the list of states that wishes they could just dole out their Electoral Votes to the winner of the popular vote.
My first question is: Why do “progressives” hate the Constitution so much? (answer: because it limits their power)
My next question is this: Since there will be, as we all know, a comparison right after the polls close in November 2008 between who won using our time tested Electoral College and the Popular Vote system, but only if a Republican wins the office, will there be “blowback” from the losers of the EC/winners of the PV System?
Or, if everyone in the country drops acid before going to the polls and votes for a Constitutional Amendment that makes the PV system our new way of electing a Chief Executive, will “Red America” have something unkind to say about it?
State your case.
Soap box, ballot box, cartridge box. Those are the three ways of changing government, and the Left seems determined to eliminate the eliminate the option of electing a rightist government from the first two.
That leaves the third option.
Are they ready for that? Aggrieved culture warriors have looooooooooong memories.
We are a democratic society, so I think we should hold a referendum on the issue. HOWEVER, part of the referendum should include the caveat (sp?) that if you wish to vote for the popular vote system, your high school diploma should be temporarily revoked until you attend a high school civics course. Why? Because that’s where I learned in the long-gone days of the late 1990’s that our founding fathers had already discussed the pros and cons of the popular vote issue and come up with the current compromise of the Electoral College system, so why haven’t THEY learned that? I swear, the only thing some people learn in history & civics is how to fall asleep in the back of the class. If they’d been awake and paying attention, they’d know we already took care of this shit. Now because of ignorance, we have to deal with it again.
It’s all an attempt by people in the more heavily populated states on the coasts, which tend to lean more to the left, to negate the small electoral college effect of the less densely populated midwest states which tend to either be centrist or lean to the right. Face it, the only reason a candidate in a close race spends any time at all in Wyoming or North Dakota is because every Electoral College vote counts. Some precincts in California represent more people than live in North Dakota, but North Dakota gets representation because they have those three votes. If that is lost, then small states with low population will lose what little importance they have now. Which is exactly what the left wants.
And, I’m sure there are dead folks in Chicago who would be very excited to have each of their “early and often” votes counting beyond Illinois’ 20-odd (I’m guessing at the number) of electoral votes. The electoral college is an excellent hedge against fraud.
But, yes, if the electoral college were replaced, the only campaigning would go on in major cities and the big states: CA, TX, NY, IL, FL, etc. because you’d get a much bigger bang for your buck there.