By George Wilson | Many people read my two articles about the U.S. Senate and the need for reform.
Someone reminded me that even through the U.S. Senate is the least representative body in the world; the British House of Lords is just as bad. I couldn’t agree more and reform is needed in Great Britain.
Some of the comments said that the Senate districts would have to be drawn anew with each census. Not true, under the constitution the number in the Senate, unlike the US House of Representatives, is determined by the number of states and not the population.
Also the states would determine how many states could be created within their boundaries. As an example, New York could have as many as five or as few as two. The same applies to California, Texas, and other states.
Also, you could have compacts and agreements that one state would handle a service for a consortium of states; namely, state police, prisons and other functions.
Throughout the history of the U.S. Senate, it has used its power to hold back desegregation, campaign finance reform, health care reform, New Deal programs, and gun control. Moreover, in this century Southern senators filibustered anti-lynching legislation, and later blocked civil rights reforms. In foreign policy, disasters like failing to join the League of Nations led to World War 11.
My fear is if the emergent multi-racial majority in the United States perceives the Senate as the tool of selfish white obstructionists controlled by wealthy oligarchs, pressure will grow on the judiciary or the President to take control and push through reforms that the majority needs and approves. This would further weaken our constitutional order.
Under my proposal, we can use the Constitution to reform the Senate or trash the Constitution to get around the Senate. The choice is ours.
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