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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsThe Founding Fathers sure did a poor job with checks and balances against a complete idiot
Trump is showing that there are a lot of holes in our Constitution. What the fuck is with there being unlimited pardon power in one person's hands? Why would that ever be a good idea?
NRaleighLiberal
(60,031 posts)3catwoman3
(24,088 posts)...MY comprehension.
ImpeachTheGOP
(89 posts)Hamilton wrote about it in the Federal Papers.
People are easily swayed by con men. That's why we don't have direct democracy. The idea was that if the people were fooled by a demagogue or snake oil salesman that the electoral college would instead assure that a qualified person would be elected president.
That did not happen obviously. Electors are not supposed to be party representatives, they're supposed to be independent people who can judge whether or not a person is deserving of the presidency.
The provisions to stop this madness were there, the directives just weren't followed.
marybourg
(12,648 posts)democracy has leveled up the populace, making it impossible for an "elite" group, the electoral college, to overrule the "will of the people" as expressed in the election. We now have the worst aspects of the elitist electoral college scheme, without it being able to yield any benefits.
I think the only workable solution is to go to the popular vote. This will take an enormous effort over decades to achieve. Maybe we should start working toward this now.
tanyev
(42,661 posts)The Founding Fathers never dreamed all three branches of government would be compromised.
Takket
(21,677 posts)unfortunately.... it is now worse than that............ and we the people are left with very little recourse as 1/3 of the country wreaks terror on everyone.
lpbk2713
(42,772 posts)They sat around exchanging ideas and agreed "surely they will never be that fucking stupid" .
flamingdem
(39,335 posts)Bill Maher addresses this tonight on New Rules.
It was obvious to the ethical and intelligent but now with Trump you have to write it all down in the rule book.
quickesst
(6,283 posts)....even more fitting for not my president.
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uponit7771
(90,370 posts)Barack_America
(28,876 posts)...or the stupidity of the voters who repeatedly voted them into office to dismantle the republic.
The constitution is actually largely working; this is specifically the consequence of the will of the voters, election integrity concerns aside (which highlights the need for those concerns to be at the forefront).
Bluepinky
(2,276 posts)Trump wasn't elected by Americans, the entire election process was corrupted by a foreign power. The Constitution forbids treason, which occurred on so many levels and by so many individuals allowing Trump to claim the office of President. The founding fathers failed to anticipate that an entire political party would cheat, lie and steal on a massive scale to achieve and maintain power, that people in government would put party and power over their country. This didn't start with Trump, it started with Reagan, who encouraged people to dislike and distrust the government.
unitedwethrive
(1,997 posts)country for years. They have taken every opportunity to pit citizens against each other and use highly charged wedge issues as cornerstones of their campaigns. Then to top it all off, they have chosen party over country, something the founding fathers never thought would happen. Most repub congress people would rather see the Democrats defeated than to have anything left of the Constitution.
Angry Dragon
(36,693 posts)Skittles
(153,261 posts)Rhiannon12866
(206,601 posts)Kentonio
(4,377 posts)These days the rules have to be nailed down detail by detail or else people will find immoral loopholes or abuses of power. Things like the presidential pardon desperately need to be curtailed.