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So here's the problem. Most (but admittedly not all) of the R reps & sens are signing up for this charade *because they know it will fail*. Their calculus is this gives them a media / primary advantage for doing it, but can safely discount the logical conclusion of their argument
That works for them because there's basically no personal cost to doing it. And in the US system as it is, not at all clear to me that externally-imposed consequences would ever be remotely on the table. Not criminal; no personal consequences; no political costs. So an easy win.
The problem is that this strategy is now the new normal. Next time the political cost of engaging in this strategy will be *far* lower.
That's fine (but obnoxious) so long as it stays in the realm of symbolic political bullshittery.
But one day it won't be. Maybe that'll be in 2025, maybe 2029, maybe later. But eventually this strategy will coincide with majorities in Congress where the strategy isn't doomed
But one day it won't be. Maybe that'll be in 2025, maybe 2029, maybe later. But eventually this strategy will coincide with majorities in Congress where the strategy isn't doomed
And on that day, America will break in a way that won't resolve without extreme violence. America *will not survive* the direct blow of a democratic election for the highest office being explicitly overruled by the other party.
What Hawley et al are doing right now is not a constitutional crisis because it is doomed and everyone knows it. But thanks to their actions, America is now a dice-roll from a real constitutional crisis every 4 years.
Realistically, the only way to avoid this now is to burn that strategy out of existence with an amendment taking Congress' ceremonial role in presidential elections away from them. They can't be trusted with it anymore, because they turned that ceremony into a constitutional bomb
And for those saying "but amendments are hard", sure, it's true. But the alternative is we'll eventually sleep walk into a fundamental power legitimacy dispute, and when that resolves the constitution will just be whatever the person standing on top of the rubble tells you it is.
"But how do you get red states to vote on this amendment?". Come on folks, that's not even a hard question.
Jan 21, 2021: "VP Harris announces intention to unilaterally select herself and Joe Biden as winners of the 2024 election. But if R states think that would kinda suck that their voters won't get a chance to pick, well, hey, here's a cool amendment to strip her of that power"
