Why I'm running
Massachusetts State Lawmakers have an impact on national politics.
Most recently we have seen Massachusetts join the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC). This is an agreement that will kick in when enough states join the compact to represent a majority of the Electoral College votes. Since each state’s legislature determines how their states Electoral votes will be applied, we are agreeing to apply those votes to the candidate that receives the most votes nationwide, regardless of the candidates vote garnering in our own state. Proponents claim that this will simply bypass our antiquated Electoral College system and award the office to the candidate that won the popular vote. This requires a greater trust that other states are running their elections cleanly. Personally, I have seen too many indications of corruption to afford some states this trust. As it stands currently, a state like Illinois (the state where the phrase “vote early, vote often” was coined) has 21 Electoral votes. I am fairly confident that the Democrat candidate is going to win in Illinois no matter what happens. The 21 Electoral votes are a given so I am not too worried about their corruption effecting the national election. The problem comes when the number of votes coming from Illinois can alter Electoral votes from other states.
When John F. Kerry was in a close contest with George W. Bush for the Presidency, the Massachusetts legislators recognized a potential problem. If John Kerry wins, the Governor will be able to select an interim Senator to replace the vacated seat. The problem was that the Governor at the time was Mitt Romney, a Republican. To prevent this from happening they passed legislation that would require a special election to replace the vacated seat rather than an appointment by the Governor. Flash forward to 2009 when Senior Senator Ted Kennedy made the Legislators aware that his deteriorating health would make it unlikely that he would be able to complete his term. He also noted that the current Governor, Deval Patrick, was a Democrat and that meant it would be okay for the Governor to appoint an interim Senator until a special election could be held a month later.
In 2004, Massachusetts became the first state to allow same-sex marriages because a three judge panel ruled that allowing only heterosexuals to marry was a violation of the Massachusetts constitution. The Massachusetts Legislator was granted 180 days to remedy the situation for which they did nothing. Same-sex marriages became legal in Massachusetts opening a can of worms for every other state in how to recognize a same-sex couple married in Massachusetts but now living in their respective states.
As you can see from these examples, the decisions and actions taken by the Massachusetts state legislator can have an impact on more than just the state of Massachusetts. Taking control of our government once again is more than just concentrating on the Federal Government. We must get conservatives to infiltrate all levels of government in America.
Most recently we have seen Massachusetts join the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC). This is an agreement that will kick in when enough states join the compact to represent a majority of the Electoral College votes. Since each state’s legislature determines how their states Electoral votes will be applied, we are agreeing to apply those votes to the candidate that receives the most votes nationwide, regardless of the candidates vote garnering in our own state. Proponents claim that this will simply bypass our antiquated Electoral College system and award the office to the candidate that won the popular vote. This requires a greater trust that other states are running their elections cleanly. Personally, I have seen too many indications of corruption to afford some states this trust. As it stands currently, a state like Illinois (the state where the phrase “vote early, vote often” was coined) has 21 Electoral votes. I am fairly confident that the Democrat candidate is going to win in Illinois no matter what happens. The 21 Electoral votes are a given so I am not too worried about their corruption effecting the national election. The problem comes when the number of votes coming from Illinois can alter Electoral votes from other states.
When John F. Kerry was in a close contest with George W. Bush for the Presidency, the Massachusetts legislators recognized a potential problem. If John Kerry wins, the Governor will be able to select an interim Senator to replace the vacated seat. The problem was that the Governor at the time was Mitt Romney, a Republican. To prevent this from happening they passed legislation that would require a special election to replace the vacated seat rather than an appointment by the Governor. Flash forward to 2009 when Senior Senator Ted Kennedy made the Legislators aware that his deteriorating health would make it unlikely that he would be able to complete his term. He also noted that the current Governor, Deval Patrick, was a Democrat and that meant it would be okay for the Governor to appoint an interim Senator until a special election could be held a month later.
In 2004, Massachusetts became the first state to allow same-sex marriages because a three judge panel ruled that allowing only heterosexuals to marry was a violation of the Massachusetts constitution. The Massachusetts Legislator was granted 180 days to remedy the situation for which they did nothing. Same-sex marriages became legal in Massachusetts opening a can of worms for every other state in how to recognize a same-sex couple married in Massachusetts but now living in their respective states.
As you can see from these examples, the decisions and actions taken by the Massachusetts state legislator can have an impact on more than just the state of Massachusetts. Taking control of our government once again is more than just concentrating on the Federal Government. We must get conservatives to infiltrate all levels of government in America.
