We Need To Do Something About That
You hear that a lot when something happens…we need to do something about that. And after the initial noise dies down, nothing ever really happens.
So it is with last week’s election and the voting process that is not only different from state to state, but virtually from precinct to precinct.
There’s always a call for change, a standardization of rules across the country. But that flies in the face of our federalist foundation and the Constitution.
Even though we are electing a president and delegates to Congress, they really are state elections, right down to the Constitution saying state legislatures are responsible for selecting electors to vote in the Electoral College.
That does not mean all is lost, however. A nationwide speed limit was imposed, as well as a standardized drinking age, based on federal pressure. But the hook was that states had their choice at the time…don’t want to drop the blood alcohol level for drunken driving to .08 percent, fine; just don’t expect federal highway money.
It’s extortion, pure and simple…but that’s how the federal government gets states to fall in line, and due to the almighty dollar, they do. In the examples I gave, there’s the backing of the interstate commerce clause, which helps…but there are others.
So if any major election changes are coming…standardized voting calendar, election day hours, when to count absentee ballots…follow the money. If Congress can find a way to tie withholding federal dollars to policy change, that may be the only hope…if, in fact, that change is even a good idea.
