Posted on 06/21/2012 4:23:13 PM PDT by ColdOne
Peter Orszag, former head of the Obama Office of Management and Budget, is desperate. With even Roll Call recognizing that President Obama is fighting an uphill battle for re-election, Orszag is floating a trial balloon: mandatory voting. His call for forced voting comes in an op/ed for Bloomberg News:
The U.S. prides itself as the beacon of democracy, but it’s very likely no U.S. president has ever been elected by a majority of American adults.
It’s our own fault -- because voter participation rates are running below 60 percent, a candidate would have to win 85 percent or more of the vote to be elected by a majority.
Compulsory voting, as exists in Australia and more than two dozen other countries, would fix that problem. As William Galston of the Brookings Institution argues, “Jury duty is mandatory; why not voting?”
During the 2008 election cycle, voter participation was approximately 64 percent; in 2004, it was about the same. Orszag wants that number up. Why?
Beyond simply raising participation, compulsory voting could alter the role of money in elections. Turn-out-the-vote efforts, often bankrolled by big-money groups, would become largely irrelevant. Negative advertising could be less effective, because a central aim of such ads is to discourage participation in the opponent’s camp.
(Excerpt) Read more at breitbart.com ...
Mandatory voting would diminish big money? I would think it would encourage it, encourage lots of negative ads etc. all in an effort to sway voters. To even remotely think it would diminish or stop it is not logical at all!
And has already been pointed out we would need a mandatory ID law to along with this. And that brings on the National ID card or even human micro-chipping.
Then perhaps we should make another right mandatory. Every adult should be required to own a gun.
This from the same guys who hate the Electoral College. They just keep tampering to get more power.
We all know how much everyone loves jury duty. My guess is people would start viewing voting the same way if they are forced in to doing it.
What a stupid idea.
He must be trying to make some abstract point about why Obama might lose because the idea is stupid and has no chance of becoming a law.
It WAS death by a thousand cuts. Lately it's full blown assault
Might work if the following changes are made to voting system:
1. Place candidates pictures on rolls of toilet paper.
2. Candidate recieving least usage wins.
Supports the demoncrapic strategy of vote now, vote often.
I thought I read about this in Australia awhile back. They have people in nursing homes “voting” who don’t know what they are doing and are just voting the way the person who handed them the ballot wants them to. Doesn’t sound like a way to run a free country to me.
Australia has had some form of it for 100 years now.
He needs to be careful what he wishes for.
that “Official Obama Kill List” is missing “unborn babies”
They’re trying to suppress the non-vote!
I see this as an admission that the Obama administration is going down. This stands in stark contrast with the loaded polls that seek to convince us that he is running neck and neck or a little ahead of Romney.
Romney backers and anti Obama people should be comforted here.
You have to look at every thing ObaMao and his ilk are putting in place as data mining activities so he (they) can track the activities of their enemies. National voter roles tied into the plethora of Guberment lists (E-Verify, No Fly list, national health records - passed in the stimulus bill - not ObaMaoCare, etc.)...
Want a job at any company who sells to, or works with with big brother? A quick check of your voting history (or a Ron Paul bumper sticker captured and ID'ed by Google's Street View) - and.... Forgetaboutit!!!
Let's review. How many of Obama's budgets have been given the thumbs up in Congress?
Yes, we’ve now reached the logical conclusion of “progressive” political thought: forced democracy. Because it’s good for you.
But paying taxes is something only 50% of the citizenry should do, right Marxists?
And in some illiterate racist nations they put pictures of the candidates on the ballot so you’ll “know” who to vote for.
The unions will make sure their members vote the “right” way. Just as the ward bosses did in the old days.
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