[tenchi:105592] Re: <OT> I have completely lost faith in the majority of US Voters.


to tenchi@usagi.org
from "Joseph Riggs" <josephriggs@lycos.com>
subject [tenchi:105592] Re: <OT> I have completely lost faith in the majority of US Voters.
date Wed, 03 Nov 2004 19:29:47 -0500
----- Original Message -----
> From: Michael Borgwardt <brazil@brazils-animeland.de>
To: tenchi@usagi.org
Subject: [tenchi:105590] Re: <OT> I have completely lost faith in the  majority of
US Voters.
Date: Thu, 4 Nov 2004 01:04:20 +0100 (CET)

> 
> 
> Not necessarily. A small party candidate could transfer his electors
> to one of the major candidates in exchange for the vice presidency
> or a cabinet post, similar to the formation of a coalition government
> in a parliamentary system.

Originally, every party had two candidates for president, and the winning candidate
got the job while the second place candidate was vice president.  This didn't last
for long, though, and a constitutional amendment was passed that changed it to its

present system.  And there were some instances in which the president and vice president
were from different parties.

Ultimately, though, the office of Vice President is largely for show.  The only real
authority that the VP has while his boss is still alive is as the president of the
Senate (and the person who casts a deciding vote if there is ever a tie in the
Senate - it happens occasionally). 

A cabinet post is another option, but truth be told the system already works that
way to a certain extent.  8 years ago, you had Pat Buchanan announcing that Rush Limbaugh
would be in his cabinet if Buchanan were ever elected - and obviously what
spurred that announcement was that he wanted to try and draw in the kind of people
who listened to Limbaugh.

Then there's the other issue that, as was pointed out, most of the third party candidates
we get here in the US aren't pushing realistic positions (for that matter, neither
were some of the Democratic party candidates - and I'm sure there would have
been a few Republican whackos if anyone had bothered to run against Bush for the nomination).


At any rate, the system isn't perfect, but no system is.  Any effective system that
involves popular representation is built on compromises.  But it works, more or less.



junior

-- 
_______________________________________________
Find what you are looking for with the Lycos Yellow Pages
http://r.lycos.com/r/yp_emailfooter/http://yellowpages.lycos.com/default.asp?SRC=lycos10




Search field Search string

archive list

unauthorized access prohibited
MLtools V3.1 Copyright (c) Usagi Labs