3 ms·
Poppycock. For the first 50 years of the nation, only 6% of the population could vote. White, male, landowners. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_votin
by js2 6y ago
Poppycock. For the first 50 years of the nation, only 6% of the population could vote. White, male, landowners.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_voting_rights_in_the_United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_voting_rights_in_t...
The founding of the nation was built on compromise. The direction ever since has been to greater equality. To more representation. To form a more perfect union. Senators used to be appointed by state legislatures until 1913. Would you advocate for a return to that? Neither party used to have primaries as we know them today. Would you advocate for a return to that?
https://www.cop.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/Direct_Election_Senators.htm https://www.cop.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/brie...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_presidential_primary#History https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_presidential_pri...
A republic just means that we elect leaders who pass laws, instead of voting on those laws directly.
The EC was a compromise just as much as the 3/5ths compromise.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-Fifths_Compromise https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-Fifths_Compromise
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Electoral_College#Three-fifths_clause_and_the_role_of_slavery https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Electoral_Colleg...
The last two presidents elected by a minority of the vote have been an unmitigated disaster for America. The EC has enabled that. The EC serves no useful purpose anymore. We should abolish it or work-around it with the National Vote Compact.
As far as the Senate, 53 Senators currently represent 15 million fewer Americans that the other 47. I think that's that's a problem. It tilts in favor of the GOP today, but tomorrow it may tilt in favor of Democrats. I would still think it's a problem.
The 26 smallest states make up only 18 percent of the population.
We can mitigate it by adding DC and Puerto Rico (should they so chose) as states. DC and PR residents are Americans. They should be represented in the Senate.
But I suppose, if I were around at the nation's founding, I would have been a Federalist.
Relevant piece on the Senate with some astute observations about why it used to work (TL;DR: compromise) but no longer does, and the danger of minoritarian rule:
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/21450891/mitch-mcconnell-ruth-bader-ginsburg-senate-congress-democrats-2020-supreme-court-filibuster https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/21450891/mitch-mccon...