1
We need real democracy in America, if America is to virtually survive, and that means the end of the tyranny of the senate, where senators representing a million or less people have voting power equal to senators representing 10, 20, even 40 million.
It is time to end the Senate as we know it. This is a big deal, an extremely challenging problem. But it is clear the future of America depends upon it.
The answer is to require that any senator must represent a single state or group of states with a population of about 3.07 million people.
Some states will band together. Some states will have several senators worth. Some will have extra people and may seek to get other states to work with them.
The larger states with two or more senators coming to them will run elections for all three senators at the same time and if, say, the state is eligible for three senators, the candidates coming in first, second and third will represent the state.
Senators will have three year terms.
At any time, states can withdraw from a multi-state alliance and re-ally with another group. The senators representing the changed configurations will all lose their jobs and have to run again, given the new circumstances. If one state has, say eight million citizens, and it loses an alliance with a state like Maine, which has 1.3 citizens, then two of the senators will be safe, they will then have to re-notiate or lose representation. And Maine will have to re-ally to get any representation.
This will cause a situation similar, in some ways, to parliaments in other nations. Call the new senate a Senatiament. Such re-alignments will take place with the approval of the voters, not governors or state congresses. That would give california 12 senators and texas about 8 senators.
Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Maine, north and south Dakota-- they would lose their power and would have to merge together. Some states will not have their own representative. They will have to share one with another or other states.
This will be fought massively, as any change from the status quo will, but America's future hangs in the balance. Deals cut, for the most part, 150 years ago, can no longer stand. Circumstances have changed too much.
I know this is revolutionary. While we're at it, we should require paper ballots and instant run-off voting that gives third party candidates a fair chance. We could even run elections for all three senators in a state/state-group so the first, second and third place victors, etc. would be elected. In states with more than three senators, the vote would be very interesting, with the possibility of exotic third party candidates winning. That would really shake things up.
