6.2. Constitutional Reform is Necessary

Contents - Index

6.2.   Constitutional Reform is Necessary                (Top)

5.2.1.   What Structural Changes Might Be Necessary?
  Change plurality rule to proportional representation
  Electoral college to direct count
  Reformed primary process
  Campaign finance reform
  Voting day national holiday

5.2.2. Advocacy Nets As The Pathway to Structural Changes

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Materials

Proportional representation and multi-party systems were virtually unknown and untried at the time of our Constitutional Convention and so all of these democratic structures have arisen since the founding of our country. Today, the U.S., Canada, and the UK are the only countries with the two-party system.

The conventional wisdom about proportional representation and multi-party systems is that they are inherently unstable. While this may seem to be intuitive, more recent analyses (Dahl) indicate that this destabilizing theory is a myth and is totally wrong. Instead, the evidence indicates that proportional representation has a stabilizing influence - even where there are deep cleavages in the population

From Bill, September 22, 03
I have done some further reading on primaries and caucuses. It reinforces my earlier comment that the "reforms" since 1972 reveal much about the democratic process in place in this country. My memory was refreshed regarding some important Supreme Court decisions holding that the national parties have the last word over the states regarding delegate selection and credentials pursuant to an analysis under which the parties enjoy a Ist Amendment Right of Association that can be intruded upon only if there is a compelling state interest (and what they would be is not hinted at). Interestingly, as the systems have evolved, despite these decisions, the power to choose delegates has increasingly been given to voters and the role of the party has been diminished. But, the domain within which voters exercise the power is the two-party system. Moreover, because candidates must appeal to voters generally (or those in their party) during the primary season they must carefully manage their campaigns and finances to cope with the front loaded primary phenomenon and the constraints imposed by the Federal Campaign Finance laws. Given the restraints the candidates have increasingly relied on the media and even media-sponsored debates. Yet, the media cares little about substance and casts the primaries as a horse race that is called based on who gets out of the gate the fastest, who meets or exceeds expectations in a given primary or caucus -- especially the NH primary and the Iowa caucus (despite the small populations involved), who raises the most money, how a candidate is faring in the polls. This unholy alliance is to the detriment of the voters and the general welfare. It seems to be another important place where online grass roots action is needed to correct a defect in the system. But how it can do so is the question. Online debates? Deliberative polling? Effective meet up campaigns? Other?

References

Canon, David T., Anne Khademian & Kenneth R. Mayer, (Eds.) Second Edition (The Enduring Debate: Classic and Contemporary Reading in American Politics (W.W. Norton: New York,
Dahl, Robert A., How Democratic Is The American Constitution? (Yale University Press: New Haven,   2002)
Greenberg, Douglas, Stanley N. Katz, Melanie Beth Oliviero, Steven C. Wheatley (Eds.), Constitutionalism and Democracy: Transitions in the Contemporary World (Oxford University Press: New York, 1993).
Grover, William F. & Joseph G. Peschek, Voices of Dissent: Critical Reading in American Politics, (Eds.), Fourth Edition (Longman: New York, 2002).
Hudson, William E., American Democracy in Peril: Seven Challenges to America's Future, Second Edition (Chatham House Publishers: New Jersey, 1998)
Kernell, Samuel & Steven S. Smith, (Eds.) Principle and Practice of American Politics: Classic and Contemporary Readings (CQ Press: Washington, D.C., 2000).
Shea, John C., (Ed.), Arguments on American Politics (Brooks/Cole: Pacific Grove, California).
Roelofs, H Mark, The Poverty of American Politics: A Theoretical Interpretation, Second Edition   (Temple University Press, 1998).

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