CONSERVATIVE POLITICAL COMMENTARY
Pro-Constitution, Anti-Globalist, Anti-Socialist, Anti-Communist, and usually with an attempt at historical and economic context ************************13th Year ----- 2009-2021*****

Wednesday, November 16, 2016

The Electoral College: Comments on Its Importance and Value

By Eddie Howell

There are some very important issues related to the Electoral College today, and arguments over whether it should be maintained or abolished. There is an effort by some of the losing side of the presidential election to persuade electors pledged to Donald Trump to change their votes to Hillary Clinton. This, in my view is a subversive effort to undermine the Constitution.

Some articles by and some linked, along with videos, by The Lexington Libertarian are quite helpful. I will also add my own comments.

The following is a video explaining the function of, and some of the reasons for, the Electoral College, which seems to be the least-understood aspect of our presidential election system:


And an even more serious effort is underway for states to pass laws requiring electors to vote for the candidate with the highest number of popular votes in the nation, regardless of the vote in their own states. This would completely negate the provisions of the Constitution on this matter and disenfranchise the voters of the states.

This is an underhanded effort to undermine the national electorate, and probably constitutes treason. It is illegal to interfere with someone's legal vote. In my state, Texas, for example, Trump was the winner, but under this law, Texas would have to cast all its electoral votes for Clinton, assuming she won the popular vote. Ridiculous, but people are seriously pressing for this law, which would go into effect when the states passing it have the required 270 electoral votes or more, circumventing the Constitution.

It is patently unconstitutional, but a liberal court might OK it if it were challenged. Dick Morris ably explains the law, which has passed one house of the legislature in several states, and also the urgency of stopping it before it can go into effect:


(Videos via The Lexington Libertarian)

Mark Newman of the Department of Physics and Center for the Study of Complex Systems, University of Michigan has provided several maps illustrating the results of the 2016 presidential election. I will refer to two of them, the results by state, and by county. The county map shows that only a small fraction of counties in the U.S. had Democratic majorities, and the rest had Republican majorities. Also, as shown by the state map, significantly more states voted GOP than Democratic.



The Electoral College is supposed to represent the states. It was set up, very wisely, by the founders, because the fact that the U.S. consists of united states is important. States are nor simply units of the Federal government, but, as the Declaration of Independence describes it,
We, therefore, the Representatives of the United States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these united Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States, that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. — And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor. [Emphasis added]
Quite a Declaration! The states subsequently established the U.S. Constitution, and delegated certain powers to the Federal government, which were considered advantageous to their people, carefully enumerating the powers so delegated. The Electoral College was designed to preserve a measure of state power while recognizing the differences in population. To abolish the Electoral College would eliminate the influence of most states in the presidential election. The states with the most large cities would determine the winner, and less-populated states would have no influence. The Electoral College exists because the states are important. Without it, the major cities would dictate policies for everyone, whether or not they would be of any benefit to other parts of the country.

The Electoral College should be preserved as a vital part of our political system, and changes to it should be done only by constitutional amendment. A change which would be beneficial, in my view, would be a requirement that electors vote according to their pledges, not using secret ballot but a public vote, and face severe penalties for not doing so. Or, perhaps, create a mechanism to automatically award electoral votes to candidates according to the state-by-state results.

You may sign the petition Dick Morris referred to here.

Further reading: Electoral College website

Thursday, November 10, 2016

“Not My President”? Try Another Country – or, Just Grow Up, It'll Be O.K.

The election of Donald Trump has very likely saved America from a fatal internal collapse. The domination of the left in our major institutions, especially government, is and has been a palpable threat to our continuation as a sovereign and free nation. Trump has heroically won the election and now must carry out a momentous and difficult plan to “Make America Great Again” and “Drain the Swamp.” A tall order indeed, but very necessary, and one that I think would never otherwise be attempted in this lifetime, let alone succeed.

The left's response is largely indicated by the protest demonstrations in major cities across the U.S. Rent-a-mob thugs, joined by ignorant college students taught by misguided if not evil professors, and also by some people who just want to make trouble. They are protesting and some are committing violent acts. Others are looking for opportunities to do violent things if they think they can get away with it.


Authorities seem unable to enforce permit requirements, and while they are willing to let people exercise their rights to protest, they are usually arresting people whose conduct gets out of hand. One may hope this business will soon wear itself out and things will quiet down. But by what do the protesters try to justify their actions?

“Love trumps hate”? Those who disagree with them aren't loving enough? What are they showing in these protests. To me, it doesn't look like love.

Many having discarded all religion except secularism or atheism, and adopted the overdone vulgarity and rudeness that marks much of our present day interaction, they often have no hesitation to curse and berate Donald Trump in the worst possible language in their demonstrations. This behavior is like that of those the Bible called “sons of Belial” and “worthless men.” If this represents the Democratic Party, it's not likely to attract worthy members. These protesters cannot claim much of a moral high ground with this behavior, and with some still calling for murdering policemen and people who disagree with them.

If they believe in democracy, why protest a legitimate democratic election? Why protest the presidency of a man who has not yet taken office?

Their accusations against President-elect Trump are not only flimsy, but actually false. They lack understanding of American tradition and the principles of political activity. They want the freedom for themselves, but not others.

Universities have become some of the stupidest places in America, and why parents would want to pay good money to send their children to that kind of environment, or why someone would want to be a student there on their own, is a mystery to me. Going to college is for many people difficult enough from the costs, the overwhelming debt, and, these days, the lack of jobs, that it can turn out to be a very negative experience that takes years to get over. Add to that the nonsense that some professors are spewing, and some students buying into, and you have a very bad situation.

When students, some at the behest of their teachers, make unreasonable demands, and administrators gladly comply, reinforcing those demands with more and more onerous rules, the whole business and mission of the university is basically lost. Political correctness is the standard rather than academic achievement. Worthless courses in worthless majors increase. It almost seems that some professors require their students to essentially turn communist if they want good grades. And students are encouraged to be the “precious snowflakes” or “cupcakes” that have to be protected from heretical opinions (i.e., those not shared by the professors and administrators). These opinions have to emphasize gender and ethnic diversity, although not intellectual or political diversity. And “inclusion,” that is, nothing is allowed that might offend someone of the coddled population.

To protect these “students,” “safe spaces” must be provided, “trigger warnings” issued, and professional counseling made immediately available. These considerations might involve racially segregated dorms or classes, and political correctness. Warning signs must be posted, and leaflets distributed. “Masculinity” is always suspect, as is being white.

This is actually the closest thing to fascist dictatorship we currently have in America. It is almost a requirement to refer to those who offend against the political correctness as being fascists or like Hitler. Most of the students and probably most of the professors have no idea what actual fascism is or who Hitler was or what he did.

There are plenty of videos and articles around that appear to show that some college students know little about history. They may have strong opinions, but are not well informed.


I am grateful for organizations like Campus Reform and the Foundation for Individual Freedom in Education (FIRE). Fox News Channel's “On the Record” program had been running a segment called “Campus Craziness,” pointing out some of these ridiculous realities.

If the protests continue and become more violent, there will have to be more robust law enforcement to quell them. Liberal Arts and Social Science education, once justly regarded as a vital part of education is often going begging as something people want to actually study, and is being replaced by pieces of leftist propaganda indoctrination. No more emphasis on actual individualism or thinking for oneself, but rather, the supposed necessity of starting with the right conclusions.

What's especially sad is that many of these college students came to school with a more or less idealistic outlook and a real desire to learn things to make the world better. What they have too often encountered is the bitter leftist political venom of professors.

Hopefully many of these protesters will learn some things to help them become mature enough to appreciate the great blessing of our American political system, that, for all its flaws, is unmatched in history or in the world today.

Monday, November 7, 2016

Why Donald Trump is Easily the Best Choice for President

Ten Reasons, Among Many, to Vote for Donald Trump
    1.  Government corruption will be rooted out with a serious and strong effort.
          2.  America will regain respect and influence in the world.
          3.  Trump will avoid wars, and any we have to fight will be won.
    4. Trump will nullify Obama's unconstitutional Executive Orders.
    5. Immigration laws will be enforced. Syrian refugee influx will be stopped and reversed.
    6. Illegal immigration will be stopped. Illegal immigrant criminals will be imprisoned or sent home.
    7. Sanctuary cities will be ended.
    8. Respect for law enforcement will be restored.
    9. Trump will not be a part of the globalist elite cabal that wants world government to subjugate all citizens except the elites. They would attempt to rule everything at every level. Some of them have expressed a strong desire to reduce the world's population and might take steps to do so through wars, pestilence and famine.
        10. Trump Administration will jump-start the economy with 
              A. Reform of regulations
              B.  Lower taxes
              C. Better trade deals. 
Trump plan will encourage businesses to hire workers, stay in the U.S., and bring money home from foreign countries.


Ten Reasons, Among Many, to Vote Against Hillary Clinton

    1. As the Wikileaks email releases and O'Keefe videos show, as well as various published reports by people who have investigated the Clintons, notably Peter Schweizer (Clinton Cash) and Dinesh D'Souza (Hillary's America), the Clintons operate an international crime syndicate which has enriched them by pay-to-play schemes
    2. The danger of nuclear war and various other wars would be increased, with unnecessary death and destruction to follow. Her actions in Syria would needlessly provoke Russia, for example.
    3. Hillary would double down on Obamacare and move toward single-payer insurance, placing most medical decisions in the hands of bureaucrats, and reducing availability of services.
    4. Hillary would raise taxes for all taxpayers, which would result in another recession.
    5. Her great increases in spending, plus a slower economy, would increase deficits and debt, with no relief in sight. She is committed to globalism, not what's best for America.
    6. She would increase government control of the media through more cronyism and try to silence dissent through FCC and copyright harassment. She would go after First Amendment freedom of speech by enforcing political correctness.
    7. She would continue to weaken religious liberty through government regulation.
    8. She would support more EPA regulations, reducing freedom. The EPA has already overstepped its boundaries greatly, and has done more harm than good under Obama.
    9. Hillary would continue Obama's practice of going after political opponents through government agency harassment, such as IRS, Dept. of Agriculture, EPA, etc.
    10. She would move toward stricter gun controls, followed by attempts at confiscation. She has stated that prohibition of guns a la Australia should be considered.