I don’t want to imagine a modern day when corrupt State legislators get to hand pick Senators, yuck.
The 16th amendment was passed in 1909, sadly by a GOP Congress, sadly it had wide support from both parties and all 3 major candidates in 1912.
https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/61-1/h28
This is the House vote, just 14 Republicans and ZERO democrats voted no. In the Senate it was 77-0
But Wilson and his democrat Congress did do a lot of damage, and here’s a fun fact, Wilson and a heavily rat Congress were elected because the GOP vote split in 1912, for anyone that thinks that would be a good idea. Wilson got fewer votes than WJ Bryan did in 1908, and 435 electoral votes.
“I don’t want to imagine a modern day when corrupt State legislators get to hand pick Senators, yuck.”
You have hit on the very reason that the 17th Amendment passed in the first place.
Election by state legislators was just as rife with corruption as you suspect. People need to go back and read the public debate that led to popular election of Senators.
There is no panacea. Just a different brand of poison.
Wait a minute, I don’t think that the GOP of 1909 is the same that it is today.