Let us begin with a short tutorial on the Constitution of the United States of America.
I fear that many Americans have no idea of the reason and need for the United States Constitution. They do not seem to understand what a beautiful, well-written, superbly structured document our Constitution is.
Our Constitution was written to cover any period in history and not just the era in which it was written. It was written with an understanding of human nature and nothing specific with respect to the era in which it was written. It was written with the knowledge that tyranny could be foisted upon citizens by an individual, an elite group, or even a majority of citizens.
Our Constitution emphasizes individual freedom.
If you do not like the manner in which the State you currently reside is governed, you are free to move to another State. That is working today.
There are many who wish to make willy-nilly changes to our Constitution, and they don’t understand what they are doing.
A Bit of History
Our Founding Fathers
This was a group of very wise, thoughtful, and well-educated men.
They understood many things, far beyond the thinking of their time.
With the Constitution, they were seeking a central government strong enough to fight foreign enemies and to keep the several States together, without having too much power. That is, a federation. Our Founders wanted limited Federal government, reserving for the several States the right to govern themselves.
Those men understood power, which is the reason for the Electoral college. They understood that by using only the popular vote, a handful of large States could control the Country. That idea applies today as it did in 1787.
Those men constructed a document with ideas never before contemplated: a document which not only defines the government, but places limits on the government.
Our Congress
The Constitution defines a bicameral Congress.
The House of Representatives was designed to represent the people. Single member districts with their representatives being elected by popular vote. The districts being defined by population. Hence, the larger the population of a State, the more representatives.
The Senate was designed to represent the several States, with each State having equal voice. Hence, two senators per State. Further, senators to be elected by State Legislatures.
A Monumental Mistake: Amendment XVII
Amendment XVII provided for the direct election of senators.
How It Started
The push for Amendment XVII occurred both in State legislatures and the House of Representatives, and began in 1890.
Amendment XVII passed both the House and the Senate in 1912 and was ratified by the States in 1913.
The Reason For the Amendment
There was a notion that Senate seats could be bought in backrooms of State legislatures, which was given as the primary reason for direct elections.
There seemed to be no thought given to the fact that the people can be bought if enough money is involved.
The Progressive movement that pushed Amendment XVII supported other constitutional changes at federal, state, and local levels, for example, non-partisan elections and unicameral legislatures.
It should be noted that big city party machines supported Amendment XVII. This was largely because state legislative apportionment of senators gave greater representation to rural areas. Machine-controlled cities could more easily mobilize voters.
The Reason It Was a Mistake
In recent years, Amendment XVII has come under some criticism from Conservatives such as Justice Antonin Scalia, and many Republicans in Congress because it removed an important power from State legislatures.
If you think on it, this amendment directed the focus away from the several States. If the legislatures elected senators, voters would be obliged to take a more serious look at state-wide elections.
And one final point. Senate elections have become national elections and further removed from the state which a senator represents. Huge amounts of money pour in from all over the place, and that money is used to buy advertising to the populace. In other words, buy the populace with out-of-state money.
A Final Thought
Return to the wisdom and reason of our Founders, and repeal Amendment XVII.
