a merger of stability..................

 

     As early as 1826, there were proposals to amend the Constitution by members who saw the legislative elections as fraught with corruption and delay.  At the start of the twentieth century, William Jennings Bryan and others pushed for direct elections, and many argued that the Senate was " a sort of aristocratic body too far removed from the people, beyond their reach, and with no special interest in their welfare."  It was an interesting argument, since that was precisely what it was designed to do.  The framers wanted to merge the stability of oligarchic and democratic systems.  This marriage was perfectly captured in a House with short terms of popular-election members and a Senate with longe terms of legislatively selected members.  That changed in 1913 with the Seventeenth Amendment specifying that senators would be chosen, like House members, in direct elections.  While there were clearly good arguments for direct elections to make senators more accountable to the voters, the change removed arguably the most important control of states in Congress.  With the expansive interpretation given interstate commerce, states would face increasing federal authority and decreasing political control.

-Jonathan Turley, Rage and the Republic:  The Unfinished Story of the American Revolution

We've evolved a bit...........................

 

     The State Governments may be regarded as constituent and essential parts of the federal Government; whilst the latter is nowise essential to the operation or organisation of the former.  Without the intervention of the State Legislatures, the President of the United States cannot be elected at all.*  They must in all cases have a great share in his appointment, and will perhaps in most cases of themselves determine it.  The Senate will be elected absolutely and exclusively by the State Legislatures.**  Even the House of Representatives, though drawn immediately from the people, will be chose very much under the influence of that class of men, whose influence over the people obtains for themselves an election into the State Legislatures.  Thus each of the principal branches of the federal Government will owe its existence more or less to the favor of the State Governments, and must consequently feel a dependence, which is much more likely to beget a disposition too obsequious, than too overbearing towards them.  On the other side, the component parts of the State Governments will in no instance be indebted for their appointment to the direct agency of the federal government, and very little if at all, to the local influence of its members.

-The Federalist #45, James Madison, January 26, 1788

*in 1800, the President was elected by the Electoral College.  In ten states, at that time, the Electors representing that state, were appointed by the State Legislatures.

**the 17th Amendment to the Constitution, ratified in 1913, established the direct election of U. S. senators in each state.

occasional messiness........................

 

     Modern election campaigns are often criticized for being negative, and today's press is slammed for being scurrilous.  But the most brutal of modern attack ads pale in comparison to the barrage of pamphlets in the 1764 Assembly election.  Pennsylvania survived them, as did Franklin, and American democracy learned it could thrive in an atmosphere of unrestrained, even intemperate, free-expression.  As the election of 1764 showed, American democracy was built on a foundation of unbridled free speech.  In the centuries since then, the nations that have thrived have been those, like America, that are most comfortable with the cacophony, and even occasional messiness, that comes from robust discussion.

Walter Isaacson, Benjamin Franklin: An American Life

Here's an idea................

 

....................................anti-Brahminization:

In reality, the party maintains a meticulous commitment to fiscal responsibility, democratic governance, and material populism.

2028.................................

 

..........................this will be interesting.

There’s a long roster of governors, senators, members of Congress, and celebrities who can take the plunge. A short list includes Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer, Illinois governor J.B. Pritzker, Maryland governor Wes Moore, Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro, Kentucky governor Andy Beshear, and California governor Gavin Newsom. Senator Christopher Murphy of Connecticut and Ro Khanna, a Silicon Valley congressman, seem likely to announce. For Democrats hungry for wealthy, famous outsiders, billionaire Mark Cuban and Stephen A. Smith, the ESPN commentator, could be viable. Pete Buttigieg will probably run again. Both Harris and her old running mate, Tim Walz, might be in the mix. For those nostalgic for bruising centrists, Rahm Emmanuel is floating a trial balloon.

a contest of opinion.......................

During the contest of opinion through which we have past, the animation of discussions and of exertions has sometimes worn an aspect which might impose on strangers unused to think freely, and to speak and to write what they think; but this being now decided by the voice of the nation, announced according to the rules of the constitution all will of course arrange themselves under the will of the law, and unite in common efforts for the common good.  All too will bear in mind this sacred principle, that though the will of the majority is in all cases to prevail, that will, to be rightful, must be reasonable; that the minority possess their equal rights, which equal laws must protect, and to violate would be oppression. Let us then, fellow citizens, unite with one heart and one mind, let us restore to social intercourse that harmony and affection without which liberty, and even life itself, are but dreary things.

-Thomas Jefferson, as excerpted from his March 4, 1801 Inaugural Address.  We would do well to remember the nastiness of the 1800 presidential election.  This was not a polite contest between friends.

Can I get an Amen.....................?

 

As always, the censors claimed that they needed sweeping powers to make the world better, safer and more truthful. And as censors always do, they proved themselves unworthy of those powers, which they deployed not just against ideas that were false but against politically inconvenient truths. In the process, they demonstrated why no one, of any ideological stripe, should be trusted with that kind of authority.

-Megan McCardle, from here

via

Optionality.................

 

Don’t get me wrong. America has a lot else going for it, including being protected by two massive oceans on its coasts and two friendly nations to its north and south, vast resources (energy, farmland, and navigable waterways), a diverse population, an educated workforce and entrepreneurial ethos, and the world’s strongest military, economy, and financial markets. However, Americans’ ability to choose how to leverage these assets most effectively is what makes it the most dynamic country and economy in the world.

-Ted Lamade, from here

Likely true.................................

 

      more fun here

Konstantin........................

 

........Ten reasons you didn't see this coming.

It was the kind of night...............

 

...........................for which hotel mini-bars were made.

-Eugene Robinson

Because you know he would......................

 

                          more fun here

The problem with...............................

 

...................................binary choices.

On the importance of.............................

 

.....................carrying out responsibilities.

The importance of correct eyewear.......

 

If only it was that simple..............

 

via

Taking a stab.................................

 ...................at understanding the electorate.

Ouch...........................

 

more fun here

The trouble with binary elections..................

....................is that one of them has to win.  If rants are your thing, enjoy Fred Reed's latest here:

 I despise Trump. He is a mean-spirited son of a bitch. His licking the boots of those revolting pseudo-Cubans in Miami and increasing sanctions, utterly unjustified, on Havana, are grounds enough for putting him behind bars. Trying to starve thirty million Venezuelans into giving up control of their oil, trying to assassinate Maduro are grounds for rehabilitating the guillotine. Beginning a cold war against China and driving a growing crop of countries into alliance against America gives new meaning to “stupidity.” This is Trump.  I wouldn’t use him for dog food. I like my dog.

But: He isn’t Biden. He has my vote.

Is this a great country, or what.............?

 more fun here