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Abolish the Senate. It’s the only way to rein in modern presidents.
The Washington Post ^ | August 30, 2016 | John Bicknell

Posted on 08/30/2016 7:37:02 PM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks

With the prospect of a President Donald Trump or a President Hillary Clinton on the horizon, the growing trend toward the executive acting without the consent of Congress is troubling to all political stripes. Both parties claim to worry about a strong presidency, at least if the other party is in the White House.

That trend has been exacerbated by President Obama, but it certainly didn’t start with him. With the exception of Calvin Coolidge, every president of the 20th and 21st centuries contributed to the problem.

Many proposals to address the imperial presidency have been floated over the decades. Some have even been implemented. None has stemmed the tide.

To rebalance the separation of powers, it is necessary to make Congress stronger. The best way to do that? Abolish the Senate.

The original constitutional purpose of the Senate — to represent the states, not the people who live in them — has long since been abandoned. With the 17th Amendment’s requirement that senators be popularly elected, there is no chance that it will ever be recovered.

Likewise, the original political purpose of the Senate — to act as a “cooling saucer” for the hot passions of the more-democratic House — has fallen victim to the evolving nature of American governance. The Senate has become more like the House, partly because more House members are being elected to the Senate, and also because the Senate’s real institutionalists — such as West Virginia Democrat Robert C. Byrd and Mississippi Republican Trent Lott — are no longer around.

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Constitution/Conservatism; Editorial; Government; News/Current Events; Philosophy; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: 17thamendment; elections; executivepower; house; people; presidency; senate; states
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To: LexBaird

The 14th amendment was written to protect freed slaves. One of the ways it has been abused is the creation of new “classes” of people the amendment supposedly protects—as opposed to the only class named in the amendment: “persons.”

Since they are now all deceased, the amendment should be repealed. (It should have contained a clause repealing itself upon the death of the last freed slave.)

Repeal would vaporize all the wretched jurisprudence that depends on contorting the 14 amendment.


81 posted on 08/30/2016 10:51:58 PM PDT by Arthur McGowan
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To: BillyBoy

The Senate was already corrupted by women’s suffrage by 1913.

Every state where women got the vote, government began to grow.

If the vote is not taken away from women, they will destroy the United States.


82 posted on 08/30/2016 10:55:33 PM PDT by Arthur McGowan
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To: dp0622

Senators were supposed to represent the state legislatures in Washington DC and were appointed by them.


83 posted on 08/30/2016 10:57:09 PM PDT by headstamp 2 (Fear is the mind killer.)
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To: fieldmarshaldj

I could get behind that... I might expand it to anyone who pays income taxes, i.e. works, or owns “property” (investments).

I think the initial limit to property owners was because they paid taxes, and there was no income tax back then.


84 posted on 08/30/2016 11:11:43 PM PDT by aquila48
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To: headstamp 2

I heard that at one time the voters didn’t elect them? Is that wrong/right/partially right?


85 posted on 08/30/2016 11:13:55 PM PDT by dp0622 (The only thing an upper crust conservative hates more than a liberal is a middle class conservative)
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To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks
Repeal the 17th amendment.
86 posted on 08/30/2016 11:16:57 PM PDT by TYVets
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To: dp0622

They used to be appointed by State Legislatures. I believe that the 17th Amendment changed that to being voted in by state voters.

Gone downhile ever since.


87 posted on 08/30/2016 11:28:01 PM PDT by little jeremiah (Half the truth is often a great lie. B. Franklin)
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To: fieldmarshaldj
You can implement anything you wish, but it’s not going to change the quality or the agenda of those elected. From Democrat states, you’ll have unencumbered Stalinists looting the treasury. From Republican states, you’ll have unencumbered RINO statists looting the treasury. You won’t get any Conservative Senators except by accident, and they’ll be swiftly removed.

For the treasury looting, look at the Tax Reform and Fiscal Responsibility amendments in the booklet. The main advantage of the given amendment makes it clear that the Senator is not an employee of the federal government (an argument used to evade accountability) and explicitly states that the States have full control over the means by which their senators may be removed or replaced.

88 posted on 08/30/2016 11:29:14 PM PDT by Edward.Fish
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To: fieldmarshaldj
You and I are looking at this differently. The Senators were to represent the States interest irrespective of the party. The longest a Senator could act against the wishes of the State Legislature would be four years then they would be out of a job.
89 posted on 08/30/2016 11:35:29 PM PDT by MCF (If my home can't be my Castle, then it will be my Alamo.)
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To: dp0622

The 17th Amendment was ratified in 1913.

Prior to that time, Senators were appointed by State Legislators and approved by the Governor, subject to recall at any time that the aforementioned decided that the Senator was not acting in the best interest of the State.

Some folks (like *me* for instance) would argue that the Senate as described in the Constitution has not existed since that time.


90 posted on 08/30/2016 11:38:59 PM PDT by shibumi (I am the Nexus One I want more life Muthah I ain't done *~)
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To: Arthur McGowan
Why two “consecutive” terms? Why not just “two terms”?

Good question.

Why don't you ask Vlad and Dmitri. They know how this works ...

91 posted on 08/30/2016 11:39:07 PM PDT by cynwoody
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To: shibumi

That’s not recent enough to blame on the 60s crop of liberals.

WTH were they thinking.

STOP TINKERING!! The rapist was wrong. The constitution isn’t a living and breathing document. It was written to STAY that way.

Of course some amendments were just. This one was just stupid.


92 posted on 08/30/2016 11:41:28 PM PDT by dp0622 (The only thing an upper crust conservative hates more than a liberal is a middle class conservative)
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To: Arthur McGowan
Why two “consecutive” terms? Why not just “two terms”?

OneWingedShark says: Honestly, to keep the incumbent advantage down; it's simply to keep a senator from really "settling in" not keep the States from sending someone back for a third term. Constraining the states WRT Senators is the opposite of the intent of the amendment, but a little constraint in the issue is needful.

93 posted on 08/30/2016 11:43:02 PM PDT by Edward.Fish
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To: shibumi

Plus I dont know my amendments from my elbow but I shall take care of that in quick time.

Tomorrow’s studies are the amendments.


94 posted on 08/30/2016 11:43:21 PM PDT by dp0622 (The only thing an upper crust conservative hates more than a liberal is a middle class conservative)
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To: Arthur McGowan
Repeal would vaporize all the wretched jurisprudence that depends on contorting the 14 amendment.

This is true, and part of what the Judicial Reform Amendment in that booklet is meant to do.

95 posted on 08/30/2016 11:47:06 PM PDT by Edward.Fish
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To: dp0622

The *real* reason for this amendment (and you won’t find this in the history books)
goes far beyond simply making the Senate into a “populist” group.

It is part of deconstructing the States. The ultimate goal of
the Globalists/Statist was and is to erase all vestiges of
local autonomy, whether it be State, County, City or Town.

The reason for this is simple.
They want to destroy personal freedom and the liberty of the individual.
Under strict construction of the US Constitution, coming
after one’s personal liberty wasn’t all that easy.
But if you take away the layers of protection afforded by home rule,
administration of justice county by county and the autonomy
of the States which was the founding principle and impetus
for a Federal Republic (as opposed to a pure Democracy or
a Monarchy or whathaveyou) then the individual is left
exposed to the brute force of the central government.

Making the Senate into an Oligarchy bought and paid for
by political parties beholden to special interests was
just one brick in the wall.
And those special interests were/are primarily
the Globalist/Statists I mentioned earlier.


96 posted on 08/30/2016 11:59:58 PM PDT by shibumi (I am the Nexus One I want more life Muthah I ain't done *~)
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To: LexBaird

Before the Civil War, the term was “the United States are...”. After the war, it became “ the United States is...”.

The 17th Ammendment was Woodrow Wilson’s tool to destroy the Representative Republic and replace is with a Mobocracy.


97 posted on 08/31/2016 2:16:26 AM PDT by Redleg Duke (Okay, the Primaries are over and it is us against the DC Uni-Party!)
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To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

In the House, we are a democracy. In the Senate, we are a Republic. We need both.


98 posted on 08/31/2016 3:13:12 AM PDT by Dixie Yooper (Ephesians 6:11)
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To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

No.
Two term limit for both houses.
No kingdoms built...folks go back to their real jobs.


99 posted on 08/31/2016 3:17:55 AM PDT by CincyRichieRich (Fatherless violence is the problem; think about the double meaning.)
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To: fieldmarshaldj

Reverting the selection of Senators to pre 17th method will restore the representation of each States population. Currently only the urbanized population centers are represented or the majority voting block. Pennsylvania’s as an example. The Senate and house are both controlled by the GOP but we end up with D governors and Federal level D senators.

It’s because Philly/Pittsburgh and the other small cities are controlling state wide elections. If we get rid of the 175th then each county would have input.


100 posted on 08/31/2016 3:47:33 AM PDT by Clean_Sweep
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