Suppose an ACA-style “insurance program” requires it, because the authors are idiots?
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Depends on how much control the federal government has over healthcare. In the UK the hospitals are run by the NHS. Well, there are a few private ones, but only in big cities. If you’re in rural UK you’re going to a federally run hospital. So yeah, in some scenarios it would absolutely be a federal issue.
Now maybe the federal government isn’t going to just let its rural citizens up & die, but they’ll have a lot of control over rural hospitals nonetheless.
That’s a legislative decision not an executive decision and both the Senate and the House structure currently favor rural voters so I wouldn’t think that is really relevant to whether the President should be elected via popular vote.
Yes. It’s not going to be perfect, but it’s also going to take a lot to offset the benefit of pure democracy. Democracy has come to its popularity because it’s very hard to argue against it.
The best way go to about this in the US, which is such a huge and diverse nation both geographically and demographically, is to leave as many issues to local governments as possible, have as many local governments as possible, and be as democratic on all levels as possible.
Direct election of a nation’s leader is not particularly popular though. Which countries have that?
Taiwan
So how does it work in NY or CA right now…or let’s say Billings, MT? Do they elect their government and senators based on some sort of weird rural people get extra power system?
Probably would have to analyze those states’ state legislatures.
I’m not going to do it, though.
But, CA has had several GOP govern(at)ors in the past. None have been so deplorable, though. Wilson didn’t even deserve to get recalled.
Wilson wasn’t recalled, he served 2 terms. Gray Davis (D) was recalled for Ahnald the Govornator
Oh yeah. Been forever ago.
OK, so even our Dem governors aren’t good enough for this state!!
One would hope that members of Congress would have more respect for the 10th Amendment - but as it is, they struggle to understand any of the first 9 along with most of the rest of them, so expecting them to understand #10 is asking too much.
Big bold assertion that defies how politicians work to get elected and then re-elected.
Rural economy is just as much affected by federal decisions as local ones, if not far more affected.
Two reforms of the EC I can see being enacted is the allocation of the Electoral Vote w/i a state to align with that state’s popular vote and a re-alignment of the EC (not necessarily seats in Congress) to re-balance population distribution.
I also think that term-limits on Congressmen should be imposed as well. Two terms for Senators and three terms for Representatives.
And there is a lot of things that should be a legislative decision . . . but somehow end up being an Executive Order.
To be clear, both Rep and Dem Prez have been guilty of this.
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Like how local areas should respond to the corona virus issue?
The corona virus is an example of a nationwide threat than should be addressed at the federal level. It is a natural disaster that effects all humans.
I think gasoline and wheel taxes are an interesting way to look at differences between local, state, and federal with a comparison between rural and urban.
- Rural consumes more gasoline than urban on a per person basis.
- Combustion engines have a global environmental impact.
- The production, transport, and sale of gasoline has local, state, and federal impact economically and environmentally.
- Use of automobiles/trucks requires a network of roads coordinated at the federal level, state level, and local level.
- etc.
How do you divide up the tax? If you push all the funding onto gas taxes you are greatly impacting rural people versus urban people. If you don’t push enough funding onto gas taxes you are subsiding rural people. Add in the political messaging to the stupid populace of “I give you benefits and someone else pays the taxes” and we have a cluster fuck of taxes and equity.
This has been my idea for a long time and I’ve always thought it genius until it dawned upon me that…
…it will be horribly abused by gerrymandering. Is there a way around gerrymandering, I’ve thought to myself…
(Remember in the 80s & 90s how the republicans were bitching and moaning about how the democrats have used gerrymandering to their advantage? Well, well, well. How the turntables… )
This is a pretty good idea. Not perfect, but better than my idea. I wish I had thought of it.
How about this: 2 votes for state wide winner. Any leftover electors are assigned proportionally. Eh…maybe…maybe not.
Anyway, it’s up to each state to decide how they want to assign their electoral votes…at least, it is now.
You shouldn’t be able to vote straight party. It shows a lack of effort on your part. I’m 100% serious on the previous two sentences.
Ballots shouldn’t be multiple choice. They should be completely write-in…short answer is acceptable, but essay would be even better. I’m <100% serious on the previous two sentences.
It doesn’t take a whole friggin’ day to vote. Early voting is a viable option in my state. It probably is in yours, too. If you need a whole day to vote, you’re doing it wrong. There is not barrier. Get your ass to the poll on time and vote.
Fine by me…better make sure those ballots are secure…I’m sure that would be no different than what is done to make sure uncounted ballots are kept secure.
This is a good practice and should continue…no matter how benign the question (Does this “I voted” sticker make me look fat?) I have great trust and respect for poll workers, but I think rules such as this help keep the riff raff from becoming poll workers.
Side story: In the small “conservative” town where my mom used to live, she worked as a poll worker. She would tell stories of how they had difficulty complying with this rule since there was only one other poll worker who identified as “democrat”.