[lit-ideas] Re: Giving Thanksgiving/Adorno and TAP
- From: "Veronica Caley" <molleo1@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 7 Dec 2010 13:06:28 -0500
Robert: "The Constitution does not require that presidents be elected by a
majority of the electorate; it does not even require that they be elected by a
plurality."
Which is why it is not all that democratic. The electoral college is to keep
the majority from making a "mistake."
Veronica Caley
Milford, MI
----- Original Message -----
From: Robert Paul
To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Monday, December 06, 2010 10:37 PM
Subject: [lit-ideas] Re: Giving Thanksgiving/Adorno and TAP
Omar wrote
I mean, I would think that what distinguishes an authoritatian
presidential system like the one in the US from dictatorship is the fact that
the US president rules with the consent of at
least the majority of the populace. If this circumstance were
removed, it would be a dictatorship then. Conversely, if Saddam Hussain had
been genuinely elected by the majority of Iraqis, he would not then have been a
dictator but an authoritarian president.
I'm not sure why you call the US form of government 'an authoritarian
presidential system.' It isn't "authoritarian' in any ordinary sense of that
word. Laws are passed by Congress and approved (or vetoed) by the president,
although Congress may in turn override a veto by a vote of at least 2/3rds of
both houses. The president appoints federal judges, including Supreme Court
justices, but those nominated must be approved by Congress. The Supreme Court
can overturn presidential directives (which are not voted on beforehand) such
as Roosevelt's Executive Order 90662, which called for the internment of
persons of Japanese descent living west of the Rockie Mountains. (In this case
the Supreme Court upheld its constitutionality.) A president may be impeached
or removed from office on other grounds by
Congress (or, I imagine, by the criminal justice system). And so on.
The Constitution does not require that presidents be elected by a majority of
the electorate; it does not even require that they be elected by a plurality.
See e.g. http://tinyurl.com/69yk5q
Robert Paul.
not running for anything
Other related posts: