I thought it was pretty funny when Putin gave the widdle boy a soccer ball to play with during the press conference.
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My take on that:
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We have an idiomatic expression that loosely translates as “can’t fall asleep for can’t stopping to laugh one’s ass off”; there probably is a Russian version as well.
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Do you realize that Donald Trump was voted into office by the American people? That he is the rightful president of the USA?
These problems will not be fixed with war (the likely trajectory), or a new president. They are cumulative, ongoing, and require much introspection. I fear we are too far gone, especially when everyone is still following this soap opera like it matters, we never learn… All you rebels need a cause, because this one isn’t yours.
That part is untrue but you’re correct that ultimately Il Douche, as awful a person and executive as he is, is a symptom of several larger problems (and not just a broken Electoral College system or a willingness on his part to accept Putin’s help).
None of these issues can be addressed while he’s in office, though. The first step is to blunt his impact (by electing as many Dems as possible this fall) and the second is to get him out of office in 2020. Then perhaps we’ll have the breathing room to reduce the disproportionate power of the Know-Nothing 27%.
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When those judges are used to push racist, xenophobic, misogynistic, anti-labor, anti-democratic court decisions, I think they will be judged by the FutruePeople. At least if the long arc of history truly does bend toward justice…
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It’s only “broken” because it did not work in our favor this time. It’s the same system that’s been in effect for every election prior to Trump. As stated there have been five presidents who have won this way. The electoral college is comprised of Americans, no? If Trump had won the popular vote, and the electoral college chose Clinton you wouldn’t be bitching about the principle.
And the dems aren’t much better.
No, it’s permanently broken, a remnant of an older time and a nation that looked very different. The Electoral College is comprised for the most part of duopoly party hacks. I’ve never argued for its elimination, but I was calling for its reform in terms of proportional appointment or election of accountable electors long before 2000 (there might be a post to that effect by me floating around what remains of Usenet). Maybe don’t assume everyone is motivated by partisan politics on this issue, yeah?
If you want to be more accurate in your original post, you can edit it to put a parenthetical “in this case the Electors” after “the American people” to make it clear that you’re not talking about the popular vote.
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I’m not certain why the distinction is necessary. It was a lawful outcome, and the reasons for the college to exist are still applicable to ensure the balance of democratic power between disproportionately populated states. This outcome sucked, yes, but it is still lawful.
The Union would likely not exist without the electoral college.
It’s necessary to fight bad rulings with clear legislation. If Roe v. Wade is reversed, then we must elect representatives that explicitly define a woman’s right to choose.
If we have liberal judges, then the concept of human rights is baked into the Supreme Court. If we have conservative judges, then we must explicitly define human rights.
If we have a House and Senate divided along party lines, we essentially cede control to SCOTUS. Conservatives have accused liberal judges of “legislating from the bench” for decades primarily because the legislature have been too divided and weak and have left too much power in the hands of judges.
Justices are part of our system of checks and balances. But they are outside of our representative democracy. Consider them a last line of defense, and soon we won’t be able to rely on them to protect us.
The distinction is necessary because when you say “the American people” it’s usually interpreted as the popular electorate. No-one is arguing the outcome is unlawful, but the EC definitely needs to be reformed despite serving the purpose you mention (which still exists but also needs to be tweaked to reflect a country where every state has a large urban area where most of its residents live).
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Hidden inside the ball are Putin’s latest instructions to Trump.
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