Electorial College

3 Pages 698 Words

Should the Electoral College be abolishd?

Viewpoint: Yes
The Velvet Coup

Daniel Lazare begins his article by stating that Hillary Clinton and Ronald Dworkin, New York University law professor, feel that the Electoral College should be eliminated. He states that “rather than guaranteeing democratic liberties, the ancient constitution denies them.” The article goes on to include an excerpt from a speech made by former Vice President, Al Gore. In one section of the speech Gore says “we want a democracy that does not give some states greater clout in presidential elections and other states less clout merely because something called the Electoral College says that’s the way it ought to be.” The article continues to display more of Al Gores’ speech. Later in his speech he offers a proposal to his opponent. “Regardless of the outcome in the Electoral College, I propose we both promise to abide by the popular vote and only by the popular vote.” The author of the article feels that if Gore was to take such a step there would be many issues to deal with. Lazare poses the question “if Al Gore was to take such a step, what would be the consequences?” Lazare makes it a point to mention that he thinks current President, George W. Bush would be the first to act adversely to Gores’ proposal.




Should the Electoral College be abolishd?


Viewpoint: No
Richard A. Posner
Electoral College Reform

Posner begins his article by stating the two criticisms of the Electoral College. He says that they are: the first complaint listed is that the Electoral College is undemocratic and the second is that the Electoral College is an unreliable device for selecting the President. He quickly defends his position and reasoning for saying that he does not feel that the Electoral College should be abolished. He defends his position by using the technique of sarcasm—which he uses very well. He says the Electoral C...