Bravo! The very fact that Donald Trump could get elected as leader of a main party, let alone as president, made it perfectly clear that American democracy was broken. The Democrats nominating someone with dementia showed the rot is affecting both parties. I hope this article sparks a serious reform movement to fix the issue. It is long overdue.
Just getting around to this, but thanks for some specifics in how our flawed (from the start?) system might be reformed. I'm in close touch with someone who has developed an all-encompassing plan to come at reform from the bottom up, restructuring every-day life. Neither that nor reforming our leadership looks very possible now but then it never did. At 85 on Saturday and living in Maricopa County most of my life, I've seen the migration of conservatism from Goldwater to Yarvin and I laugh at people who say liberals have had a similar long trajectory to the left. But Democrats have their share of smoke-filled rooms. FDR was checked, Goldwater was rejected except by the South for obvious reasons, and Nixon was checked by his own party, including Goldwater. Do we, can we change the conditions leading to this massive polarization, with race at the heart of it? I recall the very White society of my youth and then married into a Black family and realized change was in order and the changes of the 60s, so despised by conservatives, just did not finish the job. So I'm trying to live out the trajectory post-Trump. Thanks to thinkers like you we might stumble our way to some solutions. I hope to support that.
Since we’re not constrained by political reality, let me suggest constitutional amendments to reverse Citizens United, Robert’s immunity decision and Dobbs, would be good starts.
The American Democracy was permanently crippled by the 17th amendment, turning over the legislature to the passions of the people and its mobs. Every legislator was then free to solicit votes or influence to the highest bidder of backing for the next election. With no restraint on longer term consequences, actual consideration devolved into massive omnibus legislation to satisfy the desires of legislators promises as ever-expanding social programs became biggest ever Ponzi schemes in the history of the world. Long ago the fatal consequences of democracy were recognized, and today we are observing those consequences. Universal suffrage is an out let for the unwise passions of people, but it must be constrained in the structure of democratic system. And the best way to do that is to have Senators selected from the then elected members of the State's legislature by those legislators. It took over 100 years to dig this hole, but our situation is so dire we do not have that long to fill it in. Donald Trump was elected by a your fellow citizens who saw him as the only available solution to stop the digging. Working with him instead of constantly excoriating him might help.
A lovely set of suggestions, but their implementation is next to impossible. The GOP appears to see the current constitutional situation as a feature, not a bug. Talk of how the constitutional shortcomings impact both parties is piffle. In practice, Dems clutch their pearls and Republicans exploit the shortcomings to their advantage. If the parties were indeed comprised of sagacious, public-spirited people, then these reforms would be feasible. Given the Congress we have--especially the GOP contingent--these suggestions are non-starters.
Good article. However, the real need is a different majority on the Supreme Court. If the Warren Court was still here, all would be well. The agenda for 2029 ;must include expanding the court by 65 members and legislation which curtails court jurisdiction. A constitutional convention will never happen.
Great article. How do you propose amending the Constitution given the current political climate? An Article V Convention of States could be a path, though it’s tough to get 34 states on board. High-profile support, like if both former presidents Obama and Bush backed it, might help, but that’s a long shot. What do you think?
Bravo! The very fact that Donald Trump could get elected as leader of a main party, let alone as president, made it perfectly clear that American democracy was broken. The Democrats nominating someone with dementia showed the rot is affecting both parties. I hope this article sparks a serious reform movement to fix the issue. It is long overdue.
There’s no one alive today whom I trust to fiddle with the constitution.
The Messiah has come. The foundational changes are now known as the Right To Flow 🙏👑🙏
woops 6 members
Just getting around to this, but thanks for some specifics in how our flawed (from the start?) system might be reformed. I'm in close touch with someone who has developed an all-encompassing plan to come at reform from the bottom up, restructuring every-day life. Neither that nor reforming our leadership looks very possible now but then it never did. At 85 on Saturday and living in Maricopa County most of my life, I've seen the migration of conservatism from Goldwater to Yarvin and I laugh at people who say liberals have had a similar long trajectory to the left. But Democrats have their share of smoke-filled rooms. FDR was checked, Goldwater was rejected except by the South for obvious reasons, and Nixon was checked by his own party, including Goldwater. Do we, can we change the conditions leading to this massive polarization, with race at the heart of it? I recall the very White society of my youth and then married into a Black family and realized change was in order and the changes of the 60s, so despised by conservatives, just did not finish the job. So I'm trying to live out the trajectory post-Trump. Thanks to thinkers like you we might stumble our way to some solutions. I hope to support that.
Since we’re not constrained by political reality, let me suggest constitutional amendments to reverse Citizens United, Robert’s immunity decision and Dobbs, would be good starts.
The American Democracy was permanently crippled by the 17th amendment, turning over the legislature to the passions of the people and its mobs. Every legislator was then free to solicit votes or influence to the highest bidder of backing for the next election. With no restraint on longer term consequences, actual consideration devolved into massive omnibus legislation to satisfy the desires of legislators promises as ever-expanding social programs became biggest ever Ponzi schemes in the history of the world. Long ago the fatal consequences of democracy were recognized, and today we are observing those consequences. Universal suffrage is an out let for the unwise passions of people, but it must be constrained in the structure of democratic system. And the best way to do that is to have Senators selected from the then elected members of the State's legislature by those legislators. It took over 100 years to dig this hole, but our situation is so dire we do not have that long to fill it in. Donald Trump was elected by a your fellow citizens who saw him as the only available solution to stop the digging. Working with him instead of constantly excoriating him might help.
A lovely set of suggestions, but their implementation is next to impossible. The GOP appears to see the current constitutional situation as a feature, not a bug. Talk of how the constitutional shortcomings impact both parties is piffle. In practice, Dems clutch their pearls and Republicans exploit the shortcomings to their advantage. If the parties were indeed comprised of sagacious, public-spirited people, then these reforms would be feasible. Given the Congress we have--especially the GOP contingent--these suggestions are non-starters.
Good article. However, the real need is a different majority on the Supreme Court. If the Warren Court was still here, all would be well. The agenda for 2029 ;must include expanding the court by 65 members and legislation which curtails court jurisdiction. A constitutional convention will never happen.
A great post. The past few months I’ve been thinking about constitutional reform, and it has given me additional ideas and perspectives.
If you can reform the Constitution, go for parlamentarianism and proportional representation:
https://forum.effectivealtruism.org/posts/uW77FSphM6yiMZTGg/why-not-parliamentarianism-book-by-tiago-ribeiro-dos-santos
Nice work, Andy. I want to take this in better and process the ideas more. I've been playing with similar thoughts.
Great article. How do you propose amending the Constitution given the current political climate? An Article V Convention of States could be a path, though it’s tough to get 34 states on board. High-profile support, like if both former presidents Obama and Bush backed it, might help, but that’s a long shot. What do you think?