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To: Defend Liberty
The article doesn't include the fact the NPV movement is Unconstitutional. It requires a compact between the states. Article 1 Section 10 of the Constitution states "No state shall, without consent of Congress, enter into any agreement or compact with another state".
Amendment XII specifies Electors are to vote for President: "The person having the greatest number of votes for President, shall be President, if such a number be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed"

Unfortunately both of your points might be effectively circumvented without violating the Constitution. Regarding your second point, as per Article II, "Each State shall appoint, in such manner as the Legislature may therof direct, a Number of Electors...". Hence there is nothing which prevents each state legislature from appointing Electors who will vote only for the candidate who has won a majority of the national popular vote.

Your first point is stronger, but it still only requires that a majority of Congress consent to the compact. Whereas a Constitutional Amendment would require a 2/3 majority of both houses of Congress plus ratification by 3/4 of the states. As long as Republicans either control the House or have enough votes to filibuster in the Senate, then Congress is unlikely to approve such a compact. (And it's possible that only a majority of the Senate would be needed if they tried to insert it into the budget reconciliation process.) But as soon as Democrats gained total control of both houses they could approve the compact. (Although this won't necessarily break down along strictly partisan lines. Some Democratic Senators from small states could find it politically impossible to vote in favor of the compact.)

So the NPV movement is actually a very clever end-run around the otherwise impossible task of getting 2/3 of the Senate plus enough small states to ratify a Constitutional Amendment for electing Presidents by popular vote. There's a reasonable probability that eventually enough states will pass the measure to total 270 electoral votes. I certainly expect California's Democrat-dominated legislature to re-pass it, and this time a Democrat governor is likely to sign it.

37 posted on 04/04/2011 5:45:23 PM PDT by dpwiener
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To: dpwiener
Unfortunately both of your points might be effectively circumvented without violating the Constitution. Regarding your second point, as per Article II, "Each State shall appoint, in such manner as the Legislature may therof direct, a Number of Electors...". Hence there is nothing which prevents each state legislature from appointing Electors who will vote only for the candidate who has won a majority of the national popular vote.

States have always been able to choose their electors. Your scenario obviously has not been an issue for more than 220 years despite the country incrementally moving towards increasing socialism otherwise the socialists wouldn't be pushing the National Popular vote. It's less likely your scenario will occur in the future with the rise of the Tea Party movement ensuring at least an overwhelming majority of states will not become socialist to the extent of selecting a majority or all socialist electors.

Your first point is stronger, but it still only requires that a majority of Congress consent to the compact

A local radio station in my area interviewed a state Senator yesterday regarding the NPV. The Senator made the point this would likely go before SCOTUS as it would violate the Constitution thereby dragging out the issue for years.
40 posted on 04/05/2011 4:30:10 AM PDT by Defend Liberty
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