The Freedom to Choose Saturday Political Soap Box 39

There are many things about the this country that remind me of what a special place this can be compared to some other systems of government. One of the most important ones, that may seem fairly minor is going to the grocery store, seeing the peanut butter section, and realize I have choice of many different kinds and brands.  I think of old communist Soviet Union and that in their grocery store, after you've waited through a long cue, that whatever peanut butter they have left on the shelf says "Peanut Butter" in a blank generic jar- no other choices.  So it is disappointing in this country when we are offered so little choice in our elections.  Many districts have been gerrymandered to the point that opposition is futile.  

Ah, elections!  The time when we should be discussing issues but instead focus on birth certificates and dogs on roofs of cars.  When the latest inadvertent misstatement is more important than the direction they'll take the country.  When the election of the other guy will lead to a thousand years of darkness.  In the face of that, I will continue to try to focus on some basic issues and what I believe is the direction we should take. And yes, I am taking a sacrifice in number of page views by going this route instead of the Mittbot Thurston Howell route or that darn Kenyan Socialist route. 

I believe that we need a multi-party system in this country, and a whole host of electoral reforms, including how campaigns are financed, and the opportunity to have more choice.  

One of the major reasons for the decline in voting population is the utter lack of real competition in most places.  I love voting, but even I have trouble mustering up enthusiasm to vote when I am faced with far-right candidates running unopposed, and the state's electoral college rendering my presidential vote mute.  This not just a progressive problem.  I imagine the conservative voter in Berkeley  California might feel the same way.
A multi-party system would allow someone to choose politicians that more closely align with their interests.  There are multi-party countries who are run very well, thank you very much.  In fact, the strict two-party model is very rare.

I am going to briefly sketch a model that I believe will re-engage people in politics.  This is only a sketch, but hopefully in time, I can fill it out more for those who are interested

For the Presidential race, we need to eliminate the electoral college.  Direct election of a President will make everyone feel like their vote counts.  I would make it where they would be a run-off between the top two contenders and that the winner would get a majority of votes.  This way we would be sure to have a President that had to appeal to a wide swath of people, not just one interest group, and would be willing to operate more independently in the interests of all of us. An effective President must be more of an American than a partisan.

For the Senate, I would add one Senator per state so that there was an election every two years.  I would also have run-offs for Senate candidates.

The house should be dramatically expanded, to reflect a better population ratio.  There as many as two thousand or more Congressman.  Hey - stop whining!  - It's a big country.  Each Congressional district should elect multiple representatives.  These representatives should run as slate from each party.  People vote for parties rather than individuals, and then representatives are assigned proportionally.  So one district might elect two Republicans, two Democrats and a Libertarian.  When they get to Washington each district would share staff designed to represent each district.  This was when you go to the polls, even if you are in the minority in your area, you still have a chance for your voice to be heard and have a representative speaking your interests in Congress.

Of course there are other substantial problems with elections. The stink of big money is polluting the stream of American politics.  Big time campaign finance reform is in order.  And the current voter suppression efforts is one of the most disgusting, anti-democratic thing I've seen in politics in recent years. So much needs to be done.

Until next time,

T.M. Strait