Right now our Country is extremely polarized. We are very near a crisis.This has occurred because both of our Parties have spent much of the past 50 years attempting to game the Constitution their members continuously swear to uphold. To the passive voter, many of these tactics go completely unnoticed until the pot boils over. Unfortunately, then it is too late. Our Founding Fathers feared this and placed several safeguards that were supposed to prevent what we are experiencing today, but the stress is undeniable.
Why won't the extremes work? Some would say, I'm wrong. "We are effectively Governing from the far Right today". But, we really are not. To date, their have been 2 victories of any consequence. Two Conservatives on the Supreme Court and a Tax Cut. Both victories came ONLY because the rules in the Senate were changed so that in certain situations only 51 votes are needed to insure passage.
Sounds good, majority rules, right? Except that this is a very diverse Country both in Geography and Demographics. The process of electing Senators is not by majority rule. My State (Hawaii, .43% of the total population) has 2 Senators, just like California (11.96% of the total population) giving us equal representation in the Senate. This, combined with the Filibuster Rules make it possible for a very, very small minority to block or pass legislation. In the extreme, it would take only 9.36% of our total population to block any legislation. How? The 20 least populated States, each having 2 Senators, represent 9.36% of the National population. If Senators from those 20 tiny States got together to vote against the Sun rising in the East, it will fail. Ok, let's eliminate the Filibuster as many (including myself at one time) are calling for. Including the next 10 lowest populated States, they would represent 21.56% of the Population of this Country could prevent or pass any legislation. Do we really want 21% speaking for all of us?
The same holds true to my for my Progressive friends and this is why we ultimately will fail to effectively Govern this Country from either extreme. It is impossible to get these levels of agreement on anything. For the system to work; we must make concessions to the minorities; solicit their input; and refrain from bulldozing their rights. There is much more than safety in the middle. There is progress. Historically, Centrists accomplish the most. Making Political Sausage is messy, time consuming, and it is essential to add all the ingredients.
