Interest in voting by mail has increased – because of anxiety over catching the virus from fellow voters. It seems simple but there are important trade-offs to consider.
Tag: constitution
Emergency COVID-19 Powers
Emergency powers are sometimes necessary, but they should always be temporary, and only Congress should have the authority to renew them.
Corona Virus, Democracy, and Accountability
First, please take a look at the good advice from the CDC.
Second, consider
also how you...
Constitution Day, 2019
The framers came up with a Constitution that allows people who distrust each other to work productively together in pursuit of their own happiness – but only if the principles of accountability, fairness, and constrained power are respected and enforced.
Cheat or Compete?
US politics is becoming characterized more and more by cheating to win instead of working harder to be competitive enough to earn bipartisan votes. It is weakening our Republic.
Connecting the Dots
Pundits haven’t yet fully connected the dots in front of them. Yes, presidential use of national emergency powers to spend money on things that Congress chose not to authorize is against the Article 1 of Constitution. Here is the other dot: the choice of president became more consequential as the Office of the President became more powerful. This trend explains why election campaigns have been fought ever more viciously – by politicians and citizens alike.
Introduction to the Budget Process
Trust in our system of democracy depends in no small part upon how well it delivers for us. The services we get from the government are part of that. Few of us are happy about shut-downs, inadequate services, waste, and unsustainable debt. That prompts a question: how is the U.S. budget process supposed to work?
Constitution Day
Monday, September 17, is Constitution Day. It’s a good excuse to think about a few things. First of all, what’s the big deal about having a constitution? For the...
Loving the Game, Defending the Rules
We should all understand that very few of us would have a vote or a political voice if we collectively fail to defend constitutional and legal limits on political behavior.
DEFENDING DEMOCRACY IS HARD WORK
Defending democracy is inherently difficult. Reminding ourselves why the job is so problematic helps point the way towards a more effective defense.