Our constitutional system was set up to maintain the status quo and block progress. Until Democrats deal with that issue they will continue to be at a nearly insurmountable political disadvantage.
Mayhap we'll do a better job next time round. Meantime, may all the stars and constellations bring you hope as they guide you out of the dark and into the light, on this voyage and the next, and all the journeys still to come.
I just remembered one other change that Democrats CAN make and are making. Fixing the Supreme Court would be wonderful but not realistic in this environment. Given the number of cases that the court takes and realistically could take if it was willing to, the circuit courts have enormous power. Circuit court appointments and district court appointments are critical--as many and as quickly as possible. Here, both the Biden administration and the Senate are quietly on fire. Biden is working as fast as one can with such important appointments and the Senate is obliging.
I was content to be a free subscriber but this post ground my gears where I had to subscribe just to complain. I am sick and tired of hearing from Democrats how 'rigged' the system is to them and how 'screwed' they are by the Senate. In my lifetime (I am only 29, which I assume still qualifies as young) Democrats had a 60 seat majority in the Senate and a massive majority in the House. That was only a decade ago. As recently as 2012 the Electoral College actually favored the Democratic Party. When I was born the House of Representatives was basically considered a Democratic fiefdom in federal politics.
So, to be clear, the current issue with the Democratic Party is of recent vintage and is not even a decade old. So color me skeptical that they should be whining about how terrible things are for them and how the whole system is broken.
Additionally, while Cohen here (and other pundits) have the complaining part of this cycle down to a science: not one has actually proposed a realistic way around it. It seems to me that Democrats have a few options:
Option 1: Work within the confines of the current system and find ways to build a majority around the issues of the party coalitions.
Option 2: Go for purity and become a minority party and pray that in the future they can come up with a better coalition which fits the structure of the country better .
Option 3: Start a revolution and overturn the system.
Democrats are kinda sorta doing one (while doing nothing but whining about how they have to work with, gasp, Joe Manchin of all the terrible people) but the process seems almost painful for them. It would be helpful if progressives were more willing to compromise and told their activist base to quiet down and show some message discipline and, most importantly, prioritize. None of those things have been forthcoming.
If they can't do one then they need to accept minority status, or start a revolution. If they do the latter I guarantee you the country won't support them and they'll be in worse shape.
We could also expand the number of representatives in the House. Given the population growth since the last increase, it would make sense. It would also help with the disparity in the Electoral College.
Mayhap we'll do a better job next time round. Meantime, may all the stars and constellations bring you hope as they guide you out of the dark and into the light, on this voyage and the next, and all the journeys still to come.
I just remembered one other change that Democrats CAN make and are making. Fixing the Supreme Court would be wonderful but not realistic in this environment. Given the number of cases that the court takes and realistically could take if it was willing to, the circuit courts have enormous power. Circuit court appointments and district court appointments are critical--as many and as quickly as possible. Here, both the Biden administration and the Senate are quietly on fire. Biden is working as fast as one can with such important appointments and the Senate is obliging.
I was content to be a free subscriber but this post ground my gears where I had to subscribe just to complain. I am sick and tired of hearing from Democrats how 'rigged' the system is to them and how 'screwed' they are by the Senate. In my lifetime (I am only 29, which I assume still qualifies as young) Democrats had a 60 seat majority in the Senate and a massive majority in the House. That was only a decade ago. As recently as 2012 the Electoral College actually favored the Democratic Party. When I was born the House of Representatives was basically considered a Democratic fiefdom in federal politics.
So, to be clear, the current issue with the Democratic Party is of recent vintage and is not even a decade old. So color me skeptical that they should be whining about how terrible things are for them and how the whole system is broken.
Additionally, while Cohen here (and other pundits) have the complaining part of this cycle down to a science: not one has actually proposed a realistic way around it. It seems to me that Democrats have a few options:
Option 1: Work within the confines of the current system and find ways to build a majority around the issues of the party coalitions.
Option 2: Go for purity and become a minority party and pray that in the future they can come up with a better coalition which fits the structure of the country better .
Option 3: Start a revolution and overturn the system.
Democrats are kinda sorta doing one (while doing nothing but whining about how they have to work with, gasp, Joe Manchin of all the terrible people) but the process seems almost painful for them. It would be helpful if progressives were more willing to compromise and told their activist base to quiet down and show some message discipline and, most importantly, prioritize. None of those things have been forthcoming.
If they can't do one then they need to accept minority status, or start a revolution. If they do the latter I guarantee you the country won't support them and they'll be in worse shape.
We could also expand the number of representatives in the House. Given the population growth since the last increase, it would make sense. It would also help with the disparity in the Electoral College.
And Mr. Bill in the cartoon didn't even mention the filibuster! Is it any wonder no other democracy in the world has adopted our system?