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Brian HCM#1

Don’t feed the troll
Sep 7, 2001
32,238
382
Bay Area, California
Witness testimony under oath is evidence.

It’s well established that Trump was trying to have his private henchman convince the Ukrainians to investigate the Biden’s for political advantage. This continued through several channels/attempts.
You mean like the Steele dossier & Trump's Russian collusion? The left spying on the Trump campaign for political gain in 2016? The left knows the only way to get a Democratic president in 2020 is to get rid of Trump by impeachment, that's why they couldn't wait until November 2020. Problem is this is backfiring on the left. Trump's approval ratings have gone up since the hearings. At this point he'll win again in 2020. The sad thing now is the left has set the bar for impeachment, now ether side can go after a sitting president for the smallest noncrime to remove him/her from office. Impeachment is supposed to be bipartisan, the left totally destroyed that one because of their deep hatred for Trump.
 

jonKranked

Detective Dookie
Nov 10, 2005
88,935
27,125
media blackout
They have the electoral college for a reason.
because at the time it was created there wasn't a single nation on earth that allowed the general population to elect a nations chief executive? or because otherwise the northern states would essentially decide who the chief executive would be as southern states didn't allow slaves to vote?
 

Brian HCM#1

Don’t feed the troll
Sep 7, 2001
32,238
382
Bay Area, California
because at the time it was created there wasn't a single nation on earth that allowed the general population to elect a nations chief executive? or because otherwise the northern states would essentially decide who the chief executive would be as southern states didn't allow slaves to vote?
However it allows the smaller states to have a say in the election. Remove California from the election and Trump won by over 2M votes. A popular vote would allow states like CA & NY to control an entire election. CA & NY are predominantly Democrat it would never give a Republican or anyone else for that matter a chance to win. An electoral college allows every state a fair voice.
 

jonKranked

Detective Dookie
Nov 10, 2005
88,935
27,125
media blackout
However it allows the smaller states to have a say in the election. Remove California from the election and Trump won by over 2M votes. A popular vote would allow states like CA & NY to control an entire election. CA & NY are predominantly Democrat it would never give a Republican or anyone else for that matter a chance to win. An electoral college allows every state a fair voice.
so what you're saying is, if enough of the population (over 50%) votes for a given candidate, that candidate should win?
 

jonKranked

Detective Dookie
Nov 10, 2005
88,935
27,125
media blackout
now overlay that against a population density map.

A popular vote would cancel out every state that won. Trump beat Clinton easily electoral wise. You cant let one or two states dictate a popular vote.
the underlying premise of your argument here is that republicans can't win the popular vote. at the federal level, a state by state vote shouldn't matter, yet republicans cling to it (the electoral college) because they're becoming less and less able to win the popular vote, and they know it.
 

Pesqueeb

bicycle in airplane hangar
Feb 2, 2007
41,903
19,227
Riding the baggage carousel.

SkaredShtles

Michael Bolton
Sep 21, 2003
67,936
14,218
In a van.... down by the river
a popular vote is a better representation of how democracy is supposed to work.
Yup. The electoral college was one of the compromises that the founders made to CREATE the nation. They would not have been able to put together the Union at all without it.

And just in case Brian is unclear: the Electoral College counted each slave as 3/5th of a person for the purposes of apportioning the number of electors. Yet, EVERY SINGLE ONE of these 3/5ths of a person was categorically NOT allowed to vote.

I understand why the founders did it, but it is an anachronistic relic which should be tossed in the dustbin of history. The Senate is already set up to over-represent smaller states, as a balance to the majority of the urban population - there is no longer any reason, IMO, to have the Electoral College. They should have gotten rid of it as part of the 22nd amendment...
 

stoney

Part of the unwashed, middle-American horde
Jul 26, 2006
22,005
7,895
Colorado
Impeachment is supposed to be bipartisan, the left totally destroyed that one because of their deep hatred for Trump.
About that...


Clinton was impeached by the House of Representatives on December 19, 1998 on grounds of perjury to a grand jury (by a 228–206 vote; 223-5 R, 5-200 D, 0-1 independent) and obstruction of justice (by a 221–212 vote; 216-12 R, 5-199 D, 0-1 independent).[/quote]
5/200 D and 0/1 I isn't what I'd call bipartisan
 

slyfink

Turbo Monkey
Sep 16, 2008
9,804
5,635
Ottawa, Canada
Of the 3100 counties in the US, hillary won less than 500.
Now fill this in for me:
Of the x voters in the US, Hillary won y than z.

Are you saying their votes count less than those of the counties? You're essentially saying "this minority of people have the right to tell the majority of the population how to live because a group of people over 200 years ago wanted to keep slaves".

However, I will also state this is a double edged sword. Here in Canada, the Liberal party won the last election (granted it's a minority Government, so they must rely on the cooperation of other parties) with fewer votes than the Conservatives in the popular vote. The problem is, an overwhelming majority of Conservative votes came from two provinces. Is it legitimate that a party with fewer votes be allowed to govern? I think so because their representation comes from a broader cross-section of the country. The difference here is that there is no electoral college to attribute the votes between two parties. The Liberals have to govern knowing each vote in Parliament can be defeated (since they don't have a majority), so they have to learn how to negotiate and compromise.
 

dan-o

Turbo Monkey
Jun 30, 2004
6,499
2,805
Isn't that part of the "empty land doesn't vote" answer above?
I imagine a vote would need to be cast for a county to be won.
Maybe 'empty land' just doesn't vote dem?

I don't think the EC is perfect, but our country is too large/disparate to be guided by just a few population centers. imo.
 

slyfink

Turbo Monkey
Sep 16, 2008
9,804
5,635
Ottawa, Canada
This whole issue of the vote being "bipartisan"... is a really interesting argument, since it takes two parties to be bi-partisan. Meaning both parties carry an equal portion of blame (imo). To me, it's clear that the Republicans took the position that they weren't going to listen. The evidence is clear. They got their chance to question witnesses, but didn't use those chances. They are not weighing evidence on the basis of merit, they are simply acting in a partisan fashion. So when people say it was bipartisan... I say "no shit. why were the Republicans refusing to listen to anything". I think the evidence speaks for itself.
 

dan-o

Turbo Monkey
Jun 30, 2004
6,499
2,805
Now fill this in for me:
Of the x voters in the US, Hillary won y than z.

Are you saying their votes count less than those of the counties? You're essentially saying "this minority of people have the right to tell the majority of the population how to live because a group of people over 200 years ago wanted to keep slaves".

However, I will also state this is a double edged sword. Here in Canada, the Liberal party won the last election (granted it's a minority Government, so they must rely on the cooperation of other parties) with fewer votes than the Conservatives in the popular vote. The problem is, an overwhelming majority of Conservative votes came from two provinces. Is it legitimate that a party with fewer votes be allowed to govern? I think so because their representation comes from a broader cross-section of the country. The difference here is that there is no electoral college to attribute the votes between two parties. The Liberals have to govern knowing each vote in Parliament can be defeated (since they don't have a majority), so they have to learn how to negotiate and compromise.
My solution would be a coalition government where both sides need to act like adults.
 

dan-o

Turbo Monkey
Jun 30, 2004
6,499
2,805
on that we agree.
are you for or against the idea of letting the popular vote decide an election?
I'm open to whatever most fairly represents the will of the people.
Our current system, again imo, doesn't encourage full voter participation.

For example, I know many people here in MA that don't vote because a non-Dem vote is irrelevant.
I don't agree with that mindset, but being a gun owner in this god forsaken state allows me to understand how some would feel defeated and just quit participating.

My suspicion is that people in other states feel similarly (on both sides) so the historical 'popular vote' numbers may be misleading.
 

SkaredShtles

Michael Bolton
Sep 21, 2003
67,936
14,218
In a van.... down by the river
on that we agree.
are you for or against the idea of letting the popular vote decide an election?
I'm of the opinion that Senatorial power is plenty sufficient for balancing small vs. large states' power at the federal level. The Electoral College should have been abandoned around the time slavery was tossed out. The president should be elected by the popular vote.
 

stoney

Part of the unwashed, middle-American horde
Jul 26, 2006
22,005
7,895
Colorado
Of the 3100 counties in the US, hillary won less than 500.
Population of LA County - 9,787,747 (in 2011)

You're telling me that these 7 states and 379 counties should have more right to how the country is governed that the same number of people in LA County? 1 vote, 1 voice?
379​
9,828,924​
MT
56​
1,062,305
ID
44​
1,754,208​
WY
23​
577,737​
ND
53​
760,077​
SD
66​
882,235​
MS
82​
2,986,530​
WV
55​
1,805,832​
These are all 2018 numbers from Wikipedia. The 2018 number for LA County is >10mm.
 

dan-o

Turbo Monkey
Jun 30, 2004
6,499
2,805
Population of LA County - 9,787,747 (in 2011)

You're telling me that these 7 states and 379 counties should have more right to how the country is governed that the same number of people in LA County? 1 vote, 1 voice?
379​
9,828,924​
MT
56​
1,062,305
ID
44​
1,754,208​
WY
23​
577,737​
ND
53​
760,077​
SD
66​
882,235​
MS
82​
2,986,530​
WV
55​
1,805,832​
These are all 2018 numbers from Wikipedia. The 2018 number for LA County is >10mm.
Do you feel the population of LA county, or even CA as a whole, share similar mindsets/values to the residents any of those 7 states?
The CA 2020 candidates have been wholly rejected by the national electorate.

If I wanted to live under the politics of LA, or CA for matter, I'd live there.
But I don't so, as a resident of another state, I care fuck-all what those people think is the 'right' way for me to live.
Which is exactly why all politics are local.
 

Brian HCM#1

Don’t feed the troll
Sep 7, 2001
32,238
382
Bay Area, California
Do you feel the population of LA county, or even CA as a whole, share similar mindsets/values to the residents any of those 7 states?
The CA 2020 candidates have been wholly rejected by the national electorate.

If I wanted to live under the politics of LA, or CA for matter, I'd live there.
But I don't so, as a resident of another state, I care fuck-all what those people think is the 'right' way for me to live.
Which is exactly why all politics are local.
The best of our Democratically run state.


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well on a positive note, at least he made it over to aisle 12 to grab some TP. I guess its too much trouble for him to use Safeway's bathroom 50 yards away. This is Pelosi's district at its best! Gov Newsom is a worthless POS who has done nothing to help come up with a viable solution. Yep, this is why we still need the EC, the right doesn't want CA dictating an election. They can't even take care of our state.