Last updated on February 8th, 2013 at 02:18 am
Just like the lazy student who refuses to study but still expects to ace the test, Republicans are choosing to try to rig the 2016 election instead of rebuilding their party.
According to Mother Jones, Republicans in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Michigan are reviving their scheme to turn those blue states red by changing how electoral voters are awarded, “But now that Romney has been defeated, prominent GOPers are once again mulling rule changes that could make it harder for Democrats to win the White House—and easier for Republicans to claim Electoral College votes in states where they lose the popular vote…. The states where Republicans have proposed changing Electoral College rules—Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, where legislation has been introduced, and Michigan and Ohio, where activists have pushed the idea—went for Barack Obama in both 2008 and 2012. There are no such GOP proposals, for example, in deep-red Texas.”
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How does a party is disarray deal with prospect of potentially having to face a more popular than ever Hillary Clinton in 2016? Do they remake the party, dump the extremists, and move to the center? Do they reach out to women and minorities, and try to take advantage of the nation’s changing demographics? Nope. That would all be too much work for Republicans.
Instead, they have concocted a scheme to award electoral votes based on the results in the congressional districts that they have gerrymandered. In this scenario, it wouldn’t matter that Barack Obama won Pennsylvania’s popular vote, Mitt Romney would have earned 13 of the state’s 18 congressional district electoral votes. Repeat this process in a handful of blue states, and Republicans have an easy path to the presidency for years to come.
Why are Republicans plotting to steal 2016 already? Two words. Hillary Clinton.
Political insiders on both sides of the aisle believe that Sec. of State Clinton is going to run in 2016. If Clinton does run, she will bring to her candidacy a high approval rating (currently 66%), a close association with a popular two term president, the ability to raise huge sums of money, foreign policy experience, and the Clinton brand name that recalls 1990s economic prosperity.
Republicans don’t have a candidate at Sec. Clinton’s level. So if she runs, they are going to have to try to rig the game. The most striking element of the GOP plan is its laziness. Republicans are still looking for ways to get back into the White House without changing their unpopular policies. If Republicans choose this path, it will mean that they aren’t even going to try to compete with Democrats for the votes of women, African-Americans, young people, and Hispanics. The GOP isn’t going to court their votes. They are going to water them down.
Obama may have won reelection, but your vote is still in peril. Republicans are getting ready for 2016, and they are fully prepared to cheat to win.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
