The GOP's Genius Plan to Beat Obama in 2012 (It's Legal & There's Nothing Democrats Can Do About It)

[ClarkUSA]

Republican state legislators in Pennsylvania are pushing a scheme that, if GOPers in other states follow their lead, could cause President Barack Obama to lose the 2012 election—not because of the vote count, but because of new rules. That's not all: there's no legal way for Democrats to stop them.... Each state gets to determine how its electoral votes are allocated. Currently, 48 states and DC use a winner-take-all system in which the candidate who wins the popular vote in the state gets all of its electoral votes. Under the Republican plan—which has been endorsed by top Republicans in both houses of the state's legislature, as well as the governor, Tom Corbett—Pennsylvania would change from this system to one where each congressional district gets its own electoral vote. (Two electoral votes—one for each of the state's two senators—would go to the statewide winner.)

This could cost Obama dearly. The GOP controls both houses of the state legislature plus the governor's mansion—the so-called "redistricting trifecta"—in Pennsylvania. Congressional district maps are adjusted after every census, and the last one just finished up. That means Pennsylvania Republicans get to draw the boundaries of the state's congressional districts without any input from Democrats. Some of the early maps have leaked to the press, and Democrats expect that the Pennsylvania congressional map for the 2012 elections will have 12 safe GOP seats compared to just 6 safe Democratic seats.

Under the Republican plan, if the GOP presidential nominee carries the GOP-leaning districts but Obama carries the state, the GOP nominee would get 12 electoral votes out of Pennsylvania, but Obama would only get eight—six for winning the blue districts, and two (representing the state's two senators) for winning the state. Since Obama would lose 12 electoral votes relative to the winner-take-all baseline, this would have an effect equivalent to flipping a medium-sized winner-take-all state—say, Washington, which has 12 electoral votes—from blue to red.* And Republicans wouldn't even have to do any extra campaigning or spend any extra advertising dollars to do it... "It might be very likely to happen in Pennsylvania, and that's what makes this something completely new under the sun," Amar says. "It's something that no previous legislature in America since the Civil War has ever had the audacity to impose."

If Obama has another landslide win, the GOP rule-tinkering might not change the outcome. But given the state of the economy and Obama's low approval ratings, the election is likely to be close. If the president wins the states John Kerry won in 2004 plus Ohio—otherwise enough to give him a narrow win—changing the electoral vote rules in Pennsylvania alone would swing the election to the Republican nominee.... Republicans also have total political control of Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin, three other big states that traditionally go Democratic and went for Obama in 2012. Implementing a Pennsylvania-style system in those three places—in Ohio, for example, Democrats anticipate controlling just 4 or 5 of the state's 16 congressional districts—could offset Obama wins in states where he has expanded the electoral map, like Virginia, North Carolina, Colorado, or New Mexico. "If all these rust belt folks get together and make this happen that could be really dramatic," says Carolyn Fiddler, a spokeswoman for the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, which coordinates state political races for the Dems.

http://motherjones.com/politics/2011/09/gop-electoral-college-plan-beat-obama-2012

If the GOP is successful at changing the Electoral College rules in the states where they control the levers of government, then America will end up with a federal trifecta: President Perry and a GOP-controlled Congress.

[elocs]

1. Plus, a conservative Supreme Court to rubber stamp everything.

If this happens, Democrats, welcome to hell.

[truebrit71]

6. Will it be okay to call them fascists then? You know, when they are unfettered...

...and free to do as they please?

[elocs]

30. Fascist-lite. There are counties in the world that truly have suffered under fascism

and they would likely laugh at the notion that Americans are in any way equally suppressed by the type of fascism they have or had experienced.

But the seeds are here. Like the saying goes, the only thing needed for evil to triumph is for good people to do nothing.

Here in Wisconsin the Republicans have taken control of everything and we are doing what we can and have had some successes. A lot of people here are remorseful that they didn't bother to vote last November.

[jenmito]

2. This, along with their voter registration suppression, almost guarantees a Repub. win in '12...

unless Obama and as many Dems. as possible make sure to GOTV so as many people vote Dem. as in '08.

[monmouth]

3. And where is the Democratic National Committee??? Debbie?....n/t

[KamaAina]

4. Republican Rules Football.

If you can't score, move the goalposts. :eyes:

[DJ13]

5. This kind of thing is why Obama fucked up by making nice with the GOP

When Obama won he not only had a mandate, the GOP was in tatters after the Bush admin.

The worst thing he could do was to keep the GOP brand relevant by giving in to them soon after he was sworn in.

They would would have been like the Democrats after Reagan's first win, lost for a decade or more, and our country would have moved away from the hate filled conservatism they now represent.

[truebrit71]

8. Absolutely...he took his foot off their throat at exactly the wrong moment...

...we didn't want to "change" how things were done in Washington, we wanted to change who was doing things in Washington...

We didn't want compromise, we wanted a total reversal of course and instead we got 'full steam ahead'...

[Cosmocat]

27. Yes ...

his being tough on them would prevent them from doing these kinds of things, they would just cower up in a corner and play dead ...

Seriously?

[AlinPA]

7. PA is controlled by republicans. We lose.

[wryter2000]

9. There was talk of doing this in CA a few years ago

Didn't go much of anywhere, thank heaven. Repubs faked surprise that we might object. "We could try it out in CA," they said in all faux innocence. The correct answer was "Try it in Texas first."

Dems could counter in large red states, like Texas. If this had been in effect in Florida in 2000, it would have helped Gore.

[maxrandb]

10. Don't see how the Dems could do this in TX or FL

when they don't control those state legislatures or governorships.

Just goes to show you..."Staying home to send a message is STUPID! Staying home to send a message in a year that ends in "zero" is CRIMINAL!"

This country...and all the "blanking" people who decided it would be "just fine and dandy" to turn power over to the Teabaggers last election...DESERVE WHAT THEY GET!

This place is fucked. I can't wait to "effing" retire from the Navy and move to Valparaiso, Chile.

[wryter2000]

21. I see your point

It was still a good retort to the "let's just try it and see if it's a good thing" faux argument, though.

I so agree with the rest of your post. :thumbsup:

[drm604]

11. So what's a possible response to this?

I'm in PA. What can we do? Tie it up in the courts till after the elections?

[KamaAina]

13. Sounds like a plan.

Courts tend to look askance on radical changes in electoral policy if there's a chance it might violate the Voting Rights Act.

[kelly1mm]

24. True, but that argument actually helps the R's by ensuring that smaller

political entities actually do get representation.

[former9thward]

34. PA is not subject to the Voting Rights Act.

The VRA specifically names the states that it has jurisdiction over: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas and Virgina.

[Armstead]

16. Good idea if it can be timed right

[drm604]

17. Does a challenge keep it from going into effect?

I don't know much about this.

Who would have standing? Would a challenge keep it from going into effect until it's been settled?

[kelly1mm]

25. It could if the Court issues a restraining order. nt

[kelly1mm]

23. On what basis would you tie it up? 2 other states already have this type

of EC vote splitting (Nebraska/Maine). Additionally, the Constitution specifically allows the states to decide how to allocate their EC votes.

[drm604]

33. I don't know if there is a basis.

That's why I'm asking.

Maybe there's something in the PA Constitution.

[Blue Owl]

12. How can we work with the GOP to make this happen?

:sarcasm:

[msongs]

14. well obama will just have to show he is worth voting for compared to the other guy nt

[Vicar In A Tutu]

15. What sort of ludicrous, Ill-considered response is that?

NO Democrat can win a majority of PA's electoral votes if this comes to pass. None.

[Vattel]

18. unbefuckinglievable.

they have no shame

[Politicalboi]

19. It's still not too late

We have 14 months. We need billboards that shock the shit out of people who want to sit out elections, or vote for Repukes, to only cut their own throat. Make those who put out Repuke lawn signs the butt end of a joke in the neighborhoods. Get the young vote by using Twitter or Face Book, You Tube. The only way to win this is by a landslide so they can't cheat.

[MrSlayer]

20. The GOP owns the House and the Senate here.

I don't believe there is anything we can do about this.

[Marsala]

22. Our only weapon is shame

We could accuse the GOP of stealing the election with gerrymandered districts and the media might actually run with the story. It basically disenfranchises the state of Pennsylvania, or at least severely tilts the voting. There will be a lot of criticism from anyone with a sense of fairness.

[kelly1mm]

26. It works is Nebraska and Maine. They have had this system for years. nt

[blue neen]

28. Sign The Petition:

Tell the Republicans to Stop Their Partisan Presidential Power Grab in Pennsylvania

http://www.padems.com/petition/tell-republicans-stop-their-partisan-presidential-power-grab-pennsylvania

[AnnieK401]

29. Very scary!

I just posted something about this before I saw this post. I feel very helpless!

[SwampG8r]

31. they probably plan

to get a former member of their party to run as an independent and then get ultra right wing members of the democratic party to support him over the actual candidate of the democratic party.
that way "democrats" can support this 3rd party candidate instead of one who actually won primaries and was named as the democratic party candidate.
that is how the GOP wins sometimes ,by convincing really STUPID people to support them in their evil
always easier to get support for evil from the DLC

[RedCloud]

32. So are the dems areas almost 100% blue? Is that how these bastards do it?

[treestar]

35. Then Wisconsin, etc. would follow suit

At least as many states as are controlled by one party.

[maxrandb]

36. Some PA Repukes are opposing this plan because

it would make PA insignificant. Right now, states like OH, PA, FL, VA, etc, "real" battleground states have a lot of clout, and they get a lot of "attention".

If the Repukes do this, they make PA about as inconsequential as Utah is nationally (apologies to Utah DU'ers).

PA would lose any clout that it has, and would be insignificant. Who is going to waste their time on a state that you're only going to split.

All the rural fucks in what we in Ohio call "Pennsyl-tucky", could kiss any influence the state has goodbye.

Of course, what could also happen is that Eastern PA could just apply for Statehood. Let the rural areas see how much fun it will be without the tax money from the urban areas.

As a matter of fact, since Progressives and Dems control most major urban areas, we should begin introducing local legislation that pulls more of the taxpayers money back to the cities.

If the cities make up 75% of PA population, it should get 75% of the tax money. If they do this, then not a Goddamn cent of the money from Philadelphia should go to "Pennsyl-Tucky".

[AverageJoe90]

37. Legal?!? Are you FUCKING kidding? This is absolutely CRIMINAL.

There has to be a blatant violation of the law somewhere in there......In fact, it's obvious to me there IS, and this is an EXCELLENT example of how badly corrupt our political system has gotten since 2000.
It's time for the American people to rise up and STOP this criminal B.S. Can't anyone see this kind of low-down sneaky-ass B.S. is basically how Hitler gained control of Germany in the '30s? Now imagine an election, perhaps 20 years from now, with a guy similar to David Duke or Pat Buchanan at the helm, and wielding this kind of power. We are in SERIOUS trouble, folks. This is clearly illegal, but the Supreme Court appears to be turning a blind eye to this at the moment.