A shower is possible early. Cloudy skies early, followed by partial clearing. Low 34F. Winds WSW at 10 to 20 mph.
Letter: Would secret ballot change the vote?
How different would any impeachment vote be if our elected officials could vote by secret ballot?
DAVE TANIS
hocro Jan 5, 2020 6:25am
We need to know who to keep and who to send home. What we should not know is their party affiliation, while in office. Parties do not represent the people, they rep the interest of party donors, special interest.
florestan Jan 5, 2020 7:26am
What's your point, Dave? All kinds of things would be different if conducted in secret. I didn't see you list your phone number, income, and address in the letter (not that you should have, of course, but truisms tend to be a waste of time).
Pooh Jan 5, 2020 8:35am
"How different would any impeachment vote be if our elected officials could vote by secret ballot?" .... It would definitely be different, as an example go back to the 2016 election. All along Hillary was projected to win by a landslide, every poll had her leading by double digit margins. Yes I know she won the popular vote, but definitely not by the margin that was projected or needed. How many people said they were going to vote for Hillary, but once in the confines of the voting booth, marked Trump on their ballot? Was it because they didn't want to admit they really liked Trump, or because their family and friends were supposedly for Hillary? They didn't want to become an outcast. The same can be said for our representatives in Washington, both Republicans and Democrats. Their votes are out in the open for all to see, and they want to keep their jobs. So they vote along party lines, at least the majority of them, even if they don't agree. If you were to take away that openness, and their votes were secret, I think the outcomes would be different. Another thing that I think would help is term limits for all Republicans and Democrats, 8 years max, with the terms staggered so that all would not change at the same time.
Alphatruth Jan 5, 2020 10:13am
Term Limits is the ultimate answer, but who, in this pack of power-hungry fools would vote for it ?
Name Withheld Jan 5, 2020 12:26pm
I suspect a secret ballot for the impeachment would spell doom for Trump. Doom for Trump would be a good thing. But I still think the secret ballot is a terrible idea. If there's one thing that needs to be accountable, it's voting in congress. If anything, they should do away entirely with voice votes and require "electronic device" for absolutely everything.