The tyrannical attacks on Sinema and Manchin
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Thanks to our public education system, which is consistently getting worse, many people operate under the false belief that our country is a democracy. We are actually a constitutional republic, and though the term may be unfamiliar to some, there is a world of difference between the two. Democracies are essentially mob rule. A simple majority wins the day, and the minority suffers under the tyranny of popularity even if the margins come down to a percentage point.
Instead, our country was structured to favor individuals and protect the rights of the minority. To do this, we send leaders to D.C. to act as our representatives and lobby on our behalf. This ensures smaller states are not overrun by larger ones and the views of the minority are still heard and accounted for. For a nation made up of 50 diverse mini-countries, this is an imperative component of our design that ensures we can cooperate as one.
But there are many who wish this was not so, namely the current Democratic Party. From cries to abandon the Electoral College to threats to expand the U.S. Supreme Court and abolish the filibuster, progressives have made it clear that they do not want to play by the rules of the game anymore.
That same attitude has carried over to the negotiations over the budget reconciliation package, in which Democrats cannot afford to lose a single vote. It is for this reason that the party seems to have turned on two of its own members: Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia.
Sinema and Manchin have both demanded reductions to the original $3.5 trillion proposal. As it currently stands, neither has promised their support. In response, each has incurred numerous hit pieces, protesters (with some even stalking Sinema into a bathroom), and attacks by members of their own party. The message is clear: Fall in line or it's your job that will be on the line.
Both Manchin and Sinema represent unique states. Arizona may be becoming more purple than red, but it is famous for statewide officials who buck the party line, such as the late Sen. John McCain. West Virginia comprises what were formerly Blue Dog Democrat voters who have swung right in recent years. Each senator has a distinctive population to represent that does not necessarily always desire the same policies as the Democratic Party at large.
Polls show that voters in both of their states want Congress to hold off on new spending and are concerned with higher taxes, interest rates, and inflation. Furthermore, environmental policies initially proposed in the bill would gut much of the economy in Manchin's state, where many residents continue to earn their living off coal. Despite desperate attacks to malign the two senators as sellouts or shills, it would appear they are doing the exact opposite — standing up for the wishes of their voters at great personal cost to themselves.
And herein lies the real problem. Sinema and Manchin are exceptions in our system because they're two of the few members (out of 535) who do what their voters tell them instead of their party.
The growth of the two-party system in the U.S. is one of the greatest threats to our foundations. Increasingly, representatives do not even read the bills they vote on, cannot offer amendments on the floor, and must vote as they are told to by party leadership. Our bills are written by lobbyists instead of the representatives we select and send. And those who dare to fight back, such as Sinema and Manchin, are ostracized and made into targets.
In his farewell speech, George Washington warned about the "baneful effects of the spirit of party." As a nation of 330 million unique individuals, it is unthinkable that a two-party system can effectively represent us.
Democrats are working hard to move us to a straight democracy. They do not care what the voters actually want — they just care about consolidating power. And Republicans are hardly better. Voters need to insist we move in the opposite direction and return to a system where members of Congress each stand up for the wishes of the constituents that sent them there.
Hannah Cox is a libertarian-conservative writer and activist. She serves as the content manager and brand ambassador for the Foundation for Economic Education.
Tags: Opinion, Beltway Confidential, Blog Contributors, Congress, Joe Manchin, Kyrsten Sinema
Original Author: Hannah Cox
Original Location: The tyrannical attacks on Sinema and Manchin
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"Thanks to our public education system, which is consistently getting worse, many people operate under the false belief that our country is a democracy. We are actually a constitutional republic, and though the term may be unfamiliar to some, there is a world of difference between the two. Democracies are essentially mob rule. A simple majority wins the day, and the minority suffers under the tyranny of popularity even if the margins come down to a percentage point."
This nonsense again ... yikes! The US is both, one is the foundation and the other is the roof, disregard either because of some inane partisan dialogue tripe and your entire house will crumble.
Other than a few sections of Switzerland, no nation operates a pure/direct democracy.
Yes, we are a democratic constitutional republic. Yet efforts to disassemble, overwhelmingly by one party, the checks and safeguards put in place by the framers would push us towards a pure/direct democracy.
They seem to the the very few who act according to what their constituents desire. That alone makes them stick out from the rest of the party. But calling for actual fiscal responsibility? That makes them pariahs and subject to the same treatment the Democrats dish out to everybody else - hit pieces, protests, and attacks.
Ruining someone's wedding to protest a vote is insane behavior. Left wing fanatics are sewing the seeds of their own demise.
Typical actions and dress of the left. And yet they see nothing wrong with it.
This is just another example of idiotic actions by uninformed leftist morons
At the bottom of the seed it is revealed that the writer is a libertarian.
Libertarians are a much smaller voting bloc than progressives are, but we should listen to her anyway. Why?
So 48 other senators who represent tens of millions of people should fold to the desires of 2 senators who represent populations a tiny fraction of the majority. And they should do this why? Freedom? lol.
The premise of the seeded article is that "majority rule" is tyranny. So what does that make "minority rule"? Insane tyranny?
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA or do you think that the minority shouldn't have a voice?
Everyone should have a voice. The article argues that a tiny minority should have veto power.
That's how the system works. Manchin and Sinema wield a lot of power and understand how the far left radicals are destroying all the previous good accomplished by the old fashioned Democrats. The radicals of the far left are responsible for all the divisiveness going on now
The article argues that minority rights are built into the system for a reason while pointing out that a minority in one party are being bludgeoned by the majority of that party for doing their jobs and representing the majority of their constituents. The fact that they are capable of essentially veto power is only a thing because of the slim majority that one party has.