How Would You Change The US Constitution?

[Safiel]

@Ben_Natuf

I propose a 2nd amendment which would double the number of representatives. The number of people each representative “represents” has increased exponentially to the point where representatives no longer represent people in their districts so much as “interests” in their districts. This will also have the effect of lessening partisan gerrymandering as the smaller you slice the pie the harder it will be to carve.

The problem is that we stopped augmenting the size of the House of Representatives after 1910. We went from 65 seats to 435 seats between ratification of the Constitution and 1910. But due to partisan disagreement, Congress never even did a formal reapportionment in 1920, instead keeping the 1910 arrangement. Then in 1930, they adopted the stupid cap of 435 seats.

This could be changed by law. I would set the law so that the House of Representatives would be set to the cube root of the population of the United States, rounded up to the nearest odd number. This would ensure the House of Representatives would be substantially and automatically augmented every 10 years.

Here is what the House would have looked like under the 2010 reapportionment using the cube root rule:

California	82
Texas	55
New York	43
Florida	41
Illinois	28
Pennsylvania	28
Ohio	25
Michigan	22
Georgia	21
North Carolina	21
New Jersey	19
Virginia	18
Washington	15
Arizona	14
Indiana	14
Massachusetts	14
Tennessee	14
Maryland	13
Missouri	13
Minnesota	12
Wisconsin	12
Alabama	11
Colorado	11
Kentucky	10
Louisiana	10
South Carolina	10
Connecticut	8
Oklahoma	8
Oregon	8
Iowa	7
Mississippi	7
Arkansas	6
Kansas	6
Nevada	6
Utah	6
New Mexico	5
Nebraska	4
West Virginia	4
Hawaii	3
Idaho	3
Maine	3
New Hampshire	3
Alaska	2
Delaware	2
Montana	2
North Dakota	2
Rhode Island	2
South Dakota	2
Vermont	1
Wyoming	1
	677

[Ben_Natuf]

interesting. I was thinking more along the lines of each rep shall represent no more than “X” people, whatever “X” might be after doubling the size of the house. afterward it would also increase/decrease every ten years maintaining a constant “X”.

[adroit]

Totally disagree with term limits. It would push politicians towards unelected bureaucratic staff positions or lobbying positions that have far more influence with far less accountability.

Our campaign and political finance laws need to change drastically to remedy such issues. An amendment that states a clear quid pro quo is not needed for political speech restrictions and basically reverses the Citizens United decision would be my preferred amendment.

[adroit]

@Safiel

This could be changed by law. I would set the law so that the House of Representatives would be set to the cube root of the population of the United States, rounded up to the nearest odd number. This would ensure the House of Representatives would be substantially and automatically augmented every 10 years.

I back this 100%.

[Safiel]

@Ben_Natuf

interesting. I was thinking more along the lines of each rep shall represent no more than “X” people, whatever “X” might be after doubling the size of the house. afterward it would also increase/decrease every ten years maintaining a constant “X”.

I think just having a set cube root size would be easier to administer. While setting according to district size might be desirable, there is only so far you can go in that direction before you get to a House with an unmanageable number of seats. The cube root method will help to control district size while keeping the House at a manageable number of seats.

[Samm]

@merickson

When you replace a multi-term legislator with a new legislator, you get a legislator who has less experience with the legislative system than the multi-multi-term lobbyists.

In CA, the teacher’s unions and the prison guard’s union’s influence has increased since term limits.

Yep, and thus you shift power to the unelected staff, many of whom will be carryovers from the outgoing legislators.

[Samm]

There would not be room for them in the chamber. They would have to assemble in shifts.

[WuWei]

@Samm

There would not be room for them in the chamber. They would have to assemble in shifts.

They can have offices in their districts and do DC virtually. It’s 2020.

[merickson]

@Samm

@merickson

When you replace a multi-term legislator with a new legislator, you get a legislator who has less experience with the legislative system than the multi-multi-term lobbyists.

In CA, the teacher’s unions and the prison guard’s union’s influence has increased since term limits.

Yep, and thus you shift power to the unelected staff, many of whom will be carryovers from the outgoing legislators.

I hear what you’re saying and it could work in theory. But what CA has seen isn’t an increase in staff power, but an increase in lobbyist/union power. Where has term limits worked and what about those situations is different from where they haven’t worked?

[Samm]

@merickson

@Samm

@merickson

When you replace a multi-term legislator with a new legislator, you get a legislator who has less experience with the legislative system than the multi-multi-term lobbyists.

In CA, the teacher’s unions and the prison guard’s union’s influence has increased since term limits.

Yep, and thus you shift power to the unelected staff, many of whom will be carryovers from the outgoing legislators.

I hear what you’re saying and it could work in theory. But what CA has seen isn’t an increase in staff power, but an increase in lobbyist/union power. Where has term limits worked and what about those situations is different from where they haven’t worked?

Lobbyists work primarily through the staff.

[Kevhead]

@WuWei

Repeal? It’s an opinion.

Exactly, change it that corporations are not people

[WuWei]

@Kevhead

@WuWei

Repeal? It’s an opinion.

Exactly, change it that corporations are not people

And yet they are. The SCOTUS couldn’t opine any other way.

[Impenitent]

2 years mandatory military service

[markdido]

@Impenitent

2 years mandatory military service

Not feasible.

" About 3.7 million students are expected to graduate from high school during the 2019–20 school year, including 3.3 million students from public schools and 0.3 million from private schools."

Where do you plan on putting 3.7 million kids every year?

[Impenitent]

The space force needs you…

[Safiel]

The male and female population reaching 18 every year in the United States is 4.1 million. Even if you were to write half of them off as unfit for military service, it would be an impossibly large number to conscript even for just one year of mandatory service.

And because of a recent court decision, males and females would have to be conscripted, it can no longer be limited to males only.

[Ben_Natuf]

i could agree to it. it wouldn’t add as many as doubling, but it is a step in the right direction.

[johnrandolph]

Starting with scrapping the 11th, 16th, 17th, 19th, 23rd and 26th amendments.

Limit the number of people represented by an individual congress crittur to 100k.

[TrumpGurl]

There is some frightening stuff in this thread.

[conan]

Yeah, when you seen how Carter aged in just 4 years, Clinton took it pretty well IMO, Bush junior aged and so did Obama. Reagan aged but again that was normal considering his age…same with Trump. He’s taking it pretty well.

The stress regardless pf party does take it’s toll.