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Fix America: Reform the Senate

'Irrational ideas' and 'undemocratic' Senate are killing us

By John Johnson,  Newser Staff

Posted Jul 29, 2010 1:48 PM CDT
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(Newser) – EJ Dionne warns that the US won't be a superpower much longer if it doesn't reform its "incorrigibly stupid" political system. Among other things, he rails against distorted debates on taxes ("the fairy tale of supply-side economics insists that taxes are always too high, especially on the rich"), the stimulus (it actually wasn't big enough), and the structure of the "undemocratic" Senate, which allows senators representing a small portion of the country to hold up legislation because of the ridiculous filibuster rule.

"We are letting stupid politics, irrational ideas on fiscal policy and an antiquated political structure undermine our power," he writes at the Washington Post. "We need a new conservatism in our country that is worthy of the name. We need liberals willing to speak out on the threat our daft politics poses to our influence in the world. We need moderates who do more than stick their fingers in the wind to calculate the halfway point between two political poles. And, yes, we need to reform a Senate that has become an embarrassment to our democratic claims."

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.   (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 34 comments
Jes
Jul 30, 2010 10:46 PM CDT
Step 1: Lobbying reform. Step 2: Limit the number of terms. Two works fine for me. Step 3: Campaign finance reform. It would be nice to get senators who were farmers and other middle class careers, like Madison and Broom.
patriot76
Jul 30, 2010 12:27 AM CDT
Send a message and throw the bums out this November....if we don't we are all to blame for the fall of this country.
oldgoat
Jul 29, 2010 9:01 PM CDT
They need to reform the lobbying faction in DC. They are the ones that have the RNC and DNC under their thumbs. Then people need to start telling both parties to let their Congressman vote the way they should instead of the way the party says they should.

 
politics • Senate • political reform • E.J. Dionne

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