Abolish the U.S. Senate

One U.S. Senator is stopping a pretty important piece of legislation called Build Back Better (BBB) and that one Senator has stopped the bill in its tracks for now.

The bill is supported by not just the majority of people in his state but the majority of the country. The senator, Joe Manchin, is the recipient of millions of dollars in corporate dollars to his campaign committee it has been alleged. Open Secrets confirms this fact. In fact, the top four (4) contributors are all energy companies.

This is not really the way to run a country that allegedly lives and governs by the phrase — “We the people.” The conduct of many elected officials flips that on its head.

One way out of this is for the American people to dump the Senate. It is no longer needed. It is not because of Joe Manchin either. It has been obvious for a long time.

I am aware it is impossible to accomplish this without a new Constitution but we need that as well. But, first, the Senate, and why we should abolish this relic of America’s shady past?

It is rooted in white supremacy

Elie Mystal, in The Nation, breaks down real clear why the Senate became a problem and remains a problem:

…whatever justification might have existed in 1787 disappeared when it became an institution devoted to one region’s preservation of slavery in 1820. Once Senate representation became a race to preserve slavery; once states were admitted based on their likelihood to deny or uphold the rights of white men to own other people; once the Missouri Compromise called for the admission of “free” states and “slave” states in equal proportion to uphold the institution of slavery over the popular will, the argument that representation should be based on geography was shown to be nothing more than a tool of white supremacy.

Mystal’s facts are correct. If you don’t believe him, believe the state of Maine. Here’s what they state on their own website —

Congress established Maine as the 23rd state under the Missouri Compromise of 1820. This arrangement allowed Maine to join the Union as a free state, with Missouri entering a year later as a slave state, thereby preserving the numerical balance between free and slave states in the nation.

Because the Senate is rooted in the preservation of slavery and white privilege from the beginning, the country can no longer afford to endure its abusive and undemocratic presence.

It is responsible for endless checks and imbalances

The power of the Senate is completely out of balance at this point. And this is not a Republican ideal completely either. Democrats have had their go at it as well in using the body to tie up government and obstruct.

This is especially so when various Presidents have put forth the people who shall work in their administration. Time and time again the Senate suddenly becomes the scene of political football. No one can get a vote. Just an up or down vote.

The latest is the U.S. Supreme Court when Mitch McConnell effectively stole a U.S. Supreme Court seat by not allowing a vote on an Obama nominee while Obama was President. Then he flips the same rule he made up, and gave a nominee by the next President (from his party) a vote.

Right now, the U.S. Supreme Court is, in my view, invalid every time that justice (Gorsuch) votes to win a case. His seat is the most suspect seat because of how he got the seat — through the abusive power of the U.S. Senate.

A President, whether we like it not, should receive a vote on nominees for any position where they have a right to appoint and/or nominate. It is ridiculous that this goes on every time. But truly, abolish the Senate and just let a House of Representatives vote on these things.

It is minority rule by a very tiny minority

The Senate is entrenched right now in minority rule on so many levels. That is why nothing gets done. That is why small pieces of the population can stop any bill, prevent anything from happening. Here is what the late Congressmen, John Dingle wrote on it:

Today, in a nation of more than 325 million and 37 additional states, not only is that structure antiquated, it’s downright dangerous. California has almost 40 million people, while the 20 smallest states have a combined population totaling less than that. Yet because of an 18th-century political deal, those 20 states have 40 senators, while California has just two. These sparsely populated, usually conservative states can block legislation supported by a majority of the American people. That’s just plain crazy.

In the case of Joe Manchin, a Senator who represents less than 2 million people, a number which is not even 1 percent of the population, is stopping the desires of close to half the voting population, according to Five Thirty-Eight’s numbers of support for Build Back Better.

Consensus

On a basic level, the reason the Senate should go is that it is about obstruction, not action. And that is not governance. When America’s infrastructure needed to be addressed was decades ago. Regardless of party that should not come down to a legislative body rigging the game so no one gets anything.

In the African political tradition, some communities live by a concept called consensus. I would endorse that approach here in the U.S. We need more consensus.

“Consensus” is similar to many political systems in the world but one thing happens that rarely happens in America, the minority opinion can express its view, and debate its position but at some point, there is a vote and a decision. You don’t have some phony tribunal that stops even a vote.

Something happens. A law is passed. A judge is confirmed. If people don’t like it, it is easy to go the other way the next time because the obstruction is removed.

But that will can not happen as long as America has the Senate and its unequal, obstructive rules. The time has come to govern in a truly democratic way by consensus of the people. If that means new institutions and new governing powers, so be it.

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This post was previously published on ANINJUSTICEMAG.COM and is republished with permission.

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