I do think there is a fair compromise on the extreme that the 17th Amendment took. I think we could Amend the 17th amendment to include a provision for removing Senators by an act of the state legislature. Senators could be popularly elected but they would still be beholden to the interests of the states as separate governments.
I certainly think that would be an improvement over the current situation but I’m going to have to think it through before I fully endorse the idea.