President Donald Trump calls for nationalizing voting in the US, falsely claiming Democrats win through illegal votes. Critics warn of threat to democracy.
The thing is, there’s no mechanism for nationalizing voting, and I don’t really see a clear path for Republicans to do that in the next nine months. They’d have to pass legislation to do that, which would be extremely difficult given their margins in congress. Even then, states control elections as a function of the Constitution, and while the Supreme Court is happy to approve whatever unconstitutional bullshit Trump dreams up, it will take times to get through the courts. He could try to seize control of the voting process from states, but I don’t know that he has the infrastructure to manage the whole voting process through the executive branch, and the fact that he’s asking the Republicans to do this for him makes me think he knows this. Either way, any kind of coup on the election process would face the same legal challenges as legislation.
That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be extremely worried. I think it’s unlikely that the Republicans will, “nationalize the voting,” but I think it’s very likely he’ll send federal goons in to, “prevent voter fraud,” (AKA suppress the vote).
Yes, but most of those have either not been achieved yet or have only been achieved because they were relatively easy. He tried to abolish the 14th Amendment through EO on day one, and it’s just getting to the Supreme Court now.
He’s been able to illegally dissolve federal agencies because the Republicans in Congress have abdicated their power, and destroying something is much easier than building it.
Even if he signs an EO to take over the elections tomorrow, he’ll still face legal challenges that will likely wind up in the Supreme Court, and he’ll still need to build out the infrastructure to run these elections federally, something the federal government has never done. I’m not saying that he can’t steal the elections, or that we shouldn’t be worried, but the idea that he’s just going to, “federalize,” elections in fifteen states before the midterms seems pretty unlikely.
Hasn’t there already been significant efforts towards a national vote? We saw the massive progress turn into a slow burn on the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, which was the closest we’ve ever come.
That’s about ending the Electoral College. What Trump is talking about is the federal government taking control of how elections are run. The state’s are in charge of conducting their own elections, even federal elections, rather than the federal government, per the Constitution. This is what makes it difficult for Trump to rig elections through direct methods such as ballot stuffing.
But then it gets to the Senate, and Democrats can fillibuster, right? Well, the fillibuster is just a rule, which the majority keeps around because it knows it will be in the minority someday. But what if Republicans ditch it to guarantee a permanent majority? They absolutely would ditch it, if they thought it would make a difference in the election, and cement Republicans control of Congress.
The thing is, there’s no mechanism for nationalizing voting, and I don’t really see a clear path for Republicans to do that in the next nine months. They’d have to pass legislation to do that, which would be extremely difficult given their margins in congress. Even then, states control elections as a function of the Constitution, and while the Supreme Court is happy to approve whatever unconstitutional bullshit Trump dreams up, it will take times to get through the courts. He could try to seize control of the voting process from states, but I don’t know that he has the infrastructure to manage the whole voting process through the executive branch, and the fact that he’s asking the Republicans to do this for him makes me think he knows this. Either way, any kind of coup on the election process would face the same legal challenges as legislation.
That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be extremely worried. I think it’s unlikely that the Republicans will, “nationalize the voting,” but I think it’s very likely he’ll send federal goons in to, “prevent voter fraud,” (AKA suppress the vote).
The Executive Order has been their “clear path” to all sorts of shit they have no right doing.
Yes, but most of those have either not been achieved yet or have only been achieved because they were relatively easy. He tried to abolish the 14th Amendment through EO on day one, and it’s just getting to the Supreme Court now. He’s been able to illegally dissolve federal agencies because the Republicans in Congress have abdicated their power, and destroying something is much easier than building it.
Even if he signs an EO to take over the elections tomorrow, he’ll still face legal challenges that will likely wind up in the Supreme Court, and he’ll still need to build out the infrastructure to run these elections federally, something the federal government has never done. I’m not saying that he can’t steal the elections, or that we shouldn’t be worried, but the idea that he’s just going to, “federalize,” elections in fifteen states before the midterms seems pretty unlikely.
Hasn’t there already been significant efforts towards a national vote? We saw the massive progress turn into a slow burn on the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, which was the closest we’ve ever come.
That’s about ending the Electoral College. What Trump is talking about is the federal government taking control of how elections are run. The state’s are in charge of conducting their own elections, even federal elections, rather than the federal government, per the Constitution. This is what makes it difficult for Trump to rig elections through direct methods such as ballot stuffing.
Don’t be so sure the votes aren’t there in Congress. Mike Johnson just went on the record saying “I know that it’s fraudulent every time a Democrat wins, although I can’t prove it”. I bet Republicans pass something batshit crazy before the midterms.
But then it gets to the Senate, and Democrats can fillibuster, right? Well, the fillibuster is just a rule, which the majority keeps around because it knows it will be in the minority someday. But what if Republicans ditch it to guarantee a permanent majority? They absolutely would ditch it, if they thought it would make a difference in the election, and cement Republicans control of Congress.