Answer to redistricting: Enlarge Congress

Townhall.com ^ | 12-19-03 | Jonah Goldberg

[bvw]

Despite the risks we should start planning on having a Constitutional Convention. One is needed, or all is lost.

[PISANO]

Not only would I want their numbers to either remain the same or SHRINK, much more than that, I would LOVE to see them in session MUCH MUCH LESS. Maybe about 3 months out of the year. Make NO LAW is my motto. Do the appropriations bills and GET OUT of town. The regulations that result from the laws passed in this country are mind-boggling!!

[Aarchaeus]

Just what we need! More ....ing congressvermin! Only way I'd agree with it is if we could elect a bunch of them, and then declare an open season, no bag limit.

[inquest]

A constitutional convention would be dominated by leftists. All would be lost if we go that route. The Constitution as it exists, battered as it may be, is our last line of defense against full-blown socialism. There's simply nothing left to protect us once it's gone.

[dalereed]

A camel is what we got when a committee designed a horse, I can't even imagine the monstrosity that would be designed by a larger committee (congress)!

[pepsionice]

I actually had the opposite idea...instead of 435...lets cut them down to 120. I'm even willing to double their pay in the process. And once we get it down to 120...we make a simple rule that you can only divide up the state districts by counties...which must touch. And the final change...ensure they meet for only two periods out of the year....a spring 60 day period, and a fall 100 day period. This would curtail the Sunday talk show routine to just senators....and start to make things more interesting. Representatives would then actually work and get things done during their brief episodes of attendance.

[dvwjr]

The article you linked says the number 588 is based off of the 1990 census, when it says the population was about 203 million (This census document says the 1990 population was 249 million, so who knows). According to the linked document, the 2000 census counted 281 million Americans, which by the method in question would produce a 655 member house.

Glad you caught that. The 1990 census indicated that there were 203,578,000 citizens of voting-age (18 years or older) in that time-frame, which according to the cube-root formula would be ~588.27, which rounded down to a whole number of 588 potential Representatives as indicated in the linked article. The 2000 census indicates that there were 209,128,094 citizens of voting-age 18 years or older, of which the cube-root is ~593.56, rounded up to the whole number of 594 Representatives. Not too unwieldy a number...

Source: U.S. Census Bureau: DP-1. Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000

dvwjr

[ForOurFuture]

Glad you caught that.

And I'm glad you reminded me that it's based on voting age population. My neglecting that was the reason for the inconsistent numbers.

[RightWhale]

by reducing it too much, you render him unduly attached to these, and too little fit to comprehend and pursue great and national objects.

Right, don't expect the votors to have a clue, either. I'm still wondering how 10,000 representatives are going to fit into the Capitol building.

[AuH2ORepublican]

"RE: Multi-Member House districts. BAD IDEA . . . In such districts, we end up with deadbeat ('Rat) delegates who ride on the coat-tails of the other delegate(s) who either do all the work or don't and then point a finger instead"

In the case of WV, it would elect its 4 Representatives (it's currently 3, but after increasing the number of Reps to 570 WV would elect 4) from a 4-member district. Your district would almost certainly elect two Republicans and two Democrats. An important vote comes up, and only 1 of the Republicans votes the way you'd like, with the other Republican and the two RATs voting the wrong way. At the next GOP primary, where you can vote for 3 candidates, you vote for the guy who voted the right way and for two challengers (and not for the Republican who voted the wrong way). If the unfaithful Republican somehow makes it through the primary, you can just vote for the one good Republican in the general election (since you only vote for one candidate in the general anyhow). So you can hold both Republicans accountable. As for the two RATs who get elected, that's up to the RAT voters. If they want to send some idiot like Nick Joe Rahall to the House, that's their problem. But at least you'd have a couple of Republicans representing you instead of a single RAT-for-life who keeps voting to increase your taxes.

As for repealing the 17th Amendment and returning to a system in which state legislature elect Senators, while the idea appeals to me on federalism grounds, I don't think yoy'll get better representation that way. Do you think the WV legislature would ever vote against Byrd or Rockefeller? At least if a majority of West Virginians want to vote for Jay Wolfe instead of one of those two bozos they would be able to make a change in the Senate, but the RAT-dominated WV legislature would just keep sending back those two RATs no matter what the people think. Remember, it's easier to convince 50%+1 of West Virginians to oppose Byrd or Rockefeller and vote for Wolfe than it is to convince 50%+1 of West Virginians in each state legislative district to vote against their incumbent legislator merely because he or she voted for Byrd or Rockefeller. There are 1,000 other issues voters will concentrate on. Having state legislators elect Senators will make Senators even less accountable to the people than they are today.

[stands2reason]

I think with more chances for real representation, the public would become more "civic minded"---national politicians would be more accessable, more "human" to the population.

A better relationship between America and her federal government is always a good thing.

[Xthe17th]

but the RAT-dominated WV legislature would just keep sending back those two RATs no matter what the people think.

Not for long. The political landscape is changing for the better rather quickly here in WV. The 'Rat truth is starting to sink in to the people.