Durus, are you aware of WHY the 17th was enacted ? It had long ago ceased to be what you described. The Senate was filled with partisan hacks, bosses, rich guys buying seats representing individual special interests, everything BUT the “states.” The whole country knew what a joke it was by the 1910s and how completely out of touch that body was, and this was the only viable way to rectify the situation and make Senators accountable.
That is how it was sold to the American public. In reality however senators are no more accountable today then they were to legislatures, and 17th complete ignored the basic check and balance concept that the Senate was designed to represent the interest of the states, not the people.