Should the Popular Vote or the Electoral College Decide the Election?

Few people today seem to realize what a remarkable document the Constitution is. For the first time in history it set up a nation that was ruled by law, not by one individual or a small group of human beings. And not by “democratic vote”.

We are a Republic. The Constitution establishes that all our laws are to be “democratic” laws, laws that apply equally to all people regardless of wealth or class or ethnics or ? But we are not a Democracy where we would be expected to study and debate and vote on every issue, on every law. We elect (hopefully) wiser individuals to do that for us … that is a Republic.

We are steadily losing our rights to forces that ignore the principles of the Constitution and attempt to destroy it... in the name of a false “democracy”. Anyone should automatically be suspect who proposes changes to the one tool that has made us the strongest nation ever, and populated by people that are freer than any ever on the planet.

That said, the electoral college is one of the few remaining if subtle safeguards of that freedom from tyranny.

We are not one nation but a confederation of Nations. We are part of the United STATES. We have a Representative form of government, aka a Republic. Each of those States is allowed representatives to the federal government based on both their population (the House of Representatives) AND on their equality as separate States/Nations (the Senate). Those representatives make common laws for the 50 States ONLY on those subjects that the Constitution gives the Federal Government power to do so... such as a common defense. The Representatives represent the people the Senators (are supposed to) represent the individual States.

The States also have a number of electoral votes based on the combined number of Representatives plus Senators.

It is the States that elect the President, not the people. It is the legislators of each state that determines how those votes are to be cast, not the people. The people are supposed to vote for State level representatives who will then reflect their desires and their best interests in voting for a President.

In most States, their local State laws of past years have determined that the people of that State will determine how those electoral votes will be cast. That is, the State Legislature have determined to follow the results of the popular vote (that is the States' individual choice under the Constitution). In some States they have also chosen to cast those electoral votes as a block based on the majority rule (within that state). But for other States they have chosen to split those votes if the popular vote is split.

The constitution retains that right for each State, to choose how they will cast those votes through the electoral college. Historically, if the State Legislatures chose to do so, they could completely ignore the popular vote.

After all, shouldn't we elect people close to our home, people we might actually know, who hopefully will have more information than we do on who is the best qualified to lead and to serve our interests in those high offices? We should be letting those whom we chose (because we know they are smarter and wiser than us) pick the most capable.

The election of a President is supposed to be the selection of the most qualified leader, not choosing who we think looks best in a few hours of television debates. It is not a popularity contest. It is not Dancing with the Stars!

Over the years, the States have given up the right to be represented in congress by allowing their Senators to be elected by popular vote. The State legislatures now hold no power over their own Senators, who spend much of their efforts preparing for the next election, not serving the State's interests. Your local State legislatures has NO VOICE in DC. Now, the electoral college is virtually the last thread of power left to the individual states.

Changing that is one more step toward the Tyranny of the Masses feared by the founders of this nation.

Oh. So you are a history buff now. This what I think about the Republican Party, They are no different than The Democratic Party. Yes The Republican Party is the Party of Lincoln. Yes the Republican Party freed the slaves. That's where the hypocrisy starts. The freeing of the slaves was only a political move on Lincoln's part. He said himself if he can avoid war without freeing the slaves that he would. Also Lincoln didn't have a very high opinion of blacks. Lincoln, and I quote said " I agree the negro is not my equal many respects certainly not in color, perhaps not in moral or intellectual endowment." The Republican party did anything to come to power and that's all and after they got it they sold the blacks out in the compromise of 1877. The Democrats gave the Presidency to Rutherford Hayes in a closely contested election in which they won, but in exchange for the Presidency they got their "States Rights back and also the Federal troops that were posted in the south for the protection of the newly freed slaves were removed under the compromises agreement. Making way for the Southern states to for" Jim Crow" laws that marginalized the blacks and the KKK was formed to rape, burn, pillage and terrorize blacks. Even when blacks tried to build their own communities and schools and churches. (See Tulsa riots of 1921, Rosewood Florida) This continued all the way into the 1960's where the Republican Party turned most a blind eye. It is true the Democratic party was the Dixiecrat party, but things have changed and come full circle. The Democratic Party has shed that racist mantle and the Dixiecrats jumped ship into the Republican Party and even though you may want to deny it, it is true. Even Fox News is saying it. The Republican party is reduced down to old angry white men. or as Bill O'Reilly puts it "The white establishment is in the minority." That Republican freed the slaves card is just as worn out as the race card. Know your history