U.S. Representative Jamie Raskin (D-MD) attacked the Electoral College during a recent interview, suggesting that our Constitution’s method for selecting a president is “an accident waiting to happen.”
When asked by MSNBC host Chris Hayes about his role on the January 6 Committee, the former constitutional law professor responded that “we’re gonna need some legislative changes to the criminal code, to account for, now the possibility of presidents taking a headlong rush at seizing the Presidency."
“So, yeah,” Congressman Raskin continued, “I think that we will have to look at some new federal statutory changes. And we have to look at the way that the electoral system itself is vulnerable to strategic bad faith actors like Donald Trump. The Electoral College is an accident waiting to happen and we have to deal with that at some point in American history. Why not now?”
An accident waiting to happen? The founders were religiously committed to the idea that governments should derive “their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed." They did their best to enshrine this belief in the U.S. Constitution.
Of course, the original manner in which Americans voted for presidents and other federal officials was far from perfect as it excluded many Americans and had to be altered over the years.
Nevertheless, the Electoral College still serves a very important purpose–the same purpose the Founders created it for. Abolishing the Electoral College would be yet another dangerous step toward federalizing elections.
For years, states’ rights have been under assault. With its For the People Act (H.R. 1), for example, Congress proved the federal government’s willingness to consolidate power that constitutionally belongs to state and local governments. As the President of Convention of States, Mark Meckler, noted, “[H.R. 1] represents a complete federal takeover of the state election process and a usurpation of the states’ most basic constitutional responsibilities.”
The true “accident waiting to happen” comes with centralizing all election laws under a power-hungry federal government. Fortunately, we can avoid this impending catastrophe by utilizing another constitutional mechanism the Founders gave us–an Article V Convention of States.
It may seem like our federal officials are ushering in an era of American authoritarianism, but we are not without recourse. Convention of States would enable the states to reclaim and protect their rights and put D.C. back into its place.
To participate in this incredible defense of our liberty, sign the COS petition below!
‘An accident waiting to happen’; Congressman criticizes Constitution, Electoral College
Published in Blog on September 11, 2022 by Jakob Fay
