JeffKelso.Com Articles The System Works

The System Works

The system works. This simple fact is the most important thing to come out of the national elections. There are no tanks in the streets. There are not paratroopers dropping from the sky. The stock market has not crashed. People are not fleeing the country to seek asylum in other countries. The system works.

The second most important thing to come out of the election is the public ground swell of desire for total reform of the election process. Even in the probably grid-locked next Congress there are already proposals for nation-wide ballot reforms, abolition of the electoral college, and campaign finance reform. In fact, it may be that the only significant legislation that will be able to get out of the 107th Congress will be election reform.

The final decision of who wins the Presidency is only the third most important election result. Whether Bush or Gore is the final winner almost doesn't matter: neither will be able to get their major campaign proposals through the next Congress. True, court appointments would differ greatly between the two but neither will be able to get extreme nominees through the Senate. The main difference will be the tone of the presidency.

My preference is obviously for Al Gore. I feel that his intelligence, integrity, personal believes, and experience would better serve the American public.

Regardless of the outcome, the bottom line is: the system works.