Tag: rigged system

Trump: ‘I’m afraid the election’s going to be rigged’

Donald Trump is correct.  The elections are rigged.  It’s not the popular vote that wins the election.  It’s the electors who choose the president.  With the exception of Nebraska and Maine each state awards all the electors to the winner of the state.  It is a decision made by each state.  In other words even if Trump won 45% of the popular vote in California and Clinton won 55%, all 55 electors would be awarded to Clinton.  Does Trump understand the system?  That system is written into the constitution.

Donald Trump reminds me of Captain Queeg. You remember! “The Caine Mutiny” is a 1951 Pulitzer Prize–winning novel by Herman Wouk.  Humphrey Bogart starred.

Caine Mutiny – Capt. Queeg Loses It

  

 

The news item

Columbus, Ohio (CNN) Donald Trump on Monday took his complaints about the “rigged” political system one step further.

 “I’m afraid the election’s going to be rigged. I have to be honest,” Trump told voters in Ohio, a crucial swing state.

Trump’s comments Monday came as he decried Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders for endorsing Hillary Clinton in the Democratic primary, even as some Sanders supporters have continued to resist unifying behind the nominee. Trump has sought to siphon off Sanders supporters and draw them to his campaign.

 

Trump added that he has heard “more and more” that the November election will be rigged — suggesting to his supporters that the outcome of the election is out of the hands of voters.

 Trump during the primary repeatedly slammed the “rigged system” he claimed was working against his campaign to capture the Republican nomination for president. He then pivoted to using that language to decry the nomination process on the left, accusing the Democratic Party of colluding with the Clinton campaign to keep Sanders from winning that party’s nomination.

 

Trump’s comments during the primary bolstered the impression that Trump, a political outsider, was leading the charge against a corrupt political system.

But his latest comments could hurt Trump’s general election campaign as his supporters might decide not to turn out to vote if the election is already “rigged” against their candidate.

Trump continued with the “rigged” theme during a Monday night interview on Fox News. Appearing on “Hannity,” the Republican nominee suggested the potential for foul play in November. Trump pointed to the 2012 presidential election as a cause for concern.

“I’ve been hearing about it for a long time,” Trump said. “And I know last time, there were — you had precincts where there was practically nobody voting for the Republican. And I think that’s wrong. I think that was unfair, frankly” for 2012 GOP nominee Mitt Romney.

“I’m telling you, November 8, we’d better be careful, because that election is going to be rigged,” Trump added. “And I hope the Republicans are watching closely or it’s going to be taken away from us.”

America’s Election System is Rigged to Protect Those in Power

Donald Trump is correct when he says the system is rigged. The United States system of government was created in a way that the wealthy and well positioned will continue to dominate the country in all ways. It was after a wealthy group of people who called the Continental Congress together. The most famous names were all at least well off if not very rich. Benjamin Franklin owned a successful printing business, John Adams was a well known and successful lawyer, Thomas Jefferson was the owner of a large plantation, George Washington was the owner of a large plantation, and John Hancock was the owner of a large shipping company. Not all of those signing the Declaration of Independence also signed the United States Constitution but none were poor.

Those signers had at least one thing in common. They wanted a government that protected them from kings and dictators and also protected their way of life and their wealth.

To ensure that the population would not overturn their preferred form of government they created the electoral college. They gave the state legislatures the power to select their representatives in the United States Senate (later changed to a popular vote by the people). They gave the states the power to determine the boundaries of their congressional districts.

Take a look at your congressional district maps. Here is a link to the 10 most gerrymandered congressional districts.

                   North Carolina-12th disrict

Gerrymandered district

The consequence of the presidential selection process has resulted in two elections where the winner did not receive a majority of the popular vote.

In 1824, John Quincy Adams was elected president despite not winning either the popular vote or the electoral vote. Andrew Jackson was the winner in both categories. Jackson received 38,000 more popular votes than Adams, and beat him in the electoral vote 99 to 84.

In 2000, George W. Bush was declared the winner of the general election and became the 43rd president, but he didn’t win the popular vote either. Al Gore holds that distinction, garnering about 540,000 more votes than Bush. However, Bush won the electoral vote, 271 to 266.

Most states give the total winner of their state 100% of their electors voting for president. The electors are not proportionately assigned. The consequence is that the states with the highest populations could determine the outcome of the election. In Real Clear Politics current surveys Hillary Clinton has a likely lead with 209 electors from 11 states versus Donald Trump with 164 electors from 11 states.

If Donald Trump loses the election in November he will say the system is rigged. He will be correct. The system protects us from the extremists.