by Chris Black
Speaking of crumbling norms and the end of normal politics, I nearly fell out of my chair laughing when I saw this op-ed in the New York Times.
In order to protect Our Democracy from candidates like Trump with dark triad traits, maybe we should just get rid of elections and voting?
Why should we bother even pretending the system isn’t rigged?
Does Our Democracy really need to maintain the fiction that the process confers legitimacy on a winner?
Is it necessary for ordinary people to feel like they have a choice in deciding who rules them?
Aaand…..there’s no democracy.
WE’RE A CONSTITUTIONAL REPUBLIC !
On the eve of the first debate of the 2024 presidential race, trust in government is rivaling historic lows. Officials have been working hard to safeguard elections and assure citizens of their integrity. But if we want public office to have integrity, we might be better off eliminating elections altogether.
If you think that sounds anti-democratic, think again. The ancient Greeks invented democracy, and in Athens many government officials were selected through sortition — a random lottery from a pool of candidates. In the United States, we already use a version of a lottery to select jurors. What if we did the same with mayors, governors, legislators, justices and even presidents? …
Eliminate voting, and candidates with dark triad traits would be less likely than they are now to rise to the top. Of course, there’s also a risk that a lottery would deprive us of the chance to select a leader with distinctive skills. At this point, that’s a risk I’m willing to take. As lucky as America was to have Lincoln at the helm, it’s more important to limit our exposure to bad character than to roll the dice on the hopes of finding the best. …