1. Welcome to Baptist Board, a friendly forum to discuss the Baptist Faith in a friendly surrounding.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register to get access to all the features that our community has to offer.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon and God Bless!

A third-party caused deadlock?

Discussion in 'News & Current Events' started by church mouse guy, May 10, 2016.

  1. church mouse guy

    church mouse guy Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    May 23, 2002
    Messages:
    22,050
    Likes Received:
    1,857
    Faith:
    Baptist
    Thomas Sowell in an article published in Townhall calls for a third-party candidate to run against the two candidates that the American people have rejected or disliked in order to cause an Electoral College Deadlock and throw the election into the US House of Representatives where someone normal might emerge as President.

    Sowell calls Trump an unmitigated disaster.

    Here is Dr. Sowell's conclusion:

    What the Republican establishment once feared most -- that Trump would lose the nomination and run on a third party -- now seems to be a danger that has passed. But a far larger danger to something far more important, American society, is that Trump could be elected President of the United States.

    Those who talk about "the will of the people" need to know that neither Donald Trump nor Hillary Clinton represents the will of the people. Polls repeatedly show these two with the highest negative reactions of any of the candidates in either party. A majority of the people polled have negative reactions to each.

    Hillary Clinton's much-vaunted "experience" has been an experience in carrying out a policy that has failed disastrously from the Middle East to Ukraine to North Korea. We don't need more of that kind of experience.

    What was once feared most by the Republican establishment -- a third party candidate for President -- may represent the only slim chance for saving this country from a catastrophic administration in an age of proliferating nuclear weapons.

    If a third party candidate could divide the vote enough to prevent anyone from getting an electoral college majority, that would throw the election into the House of Representatives, where any semblance of sanity could produce a better president than these two.

    http://townhall.com/columnists/thomassowell/2016/05/06/an-unmitigated-disaster-n2158652
     
  2. Salty

    Salty 20,000 Posts Club
    Administrator

    Joined:
    Apr 8, 2003
    Messages:
    38,982
    Likes Received:
    2,615
    Faith:
    Baptist
    I doubt that would happen - if anythint -git would just throw the electionto Clinton
     
  3. church mouse guy

    church mouse guy Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    May 23, 2002
    Messages:
    22,050
    Likes Received:
    1,857
    Faith:
    Baptist
    I don't understand why you would hate for a Constitutional mechanism to take effect. Assuming that Trump and Clinton each have just short of a majority in their respective parties, where are decent people to go to compensate for the failure of the two major parties when either candidate just means a continuation of the Obama dysfunctionality?
     
  4. 777

    777 Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Nov 25, 2006
    Messages:
    3,085
    Likes Received:
    1,190
    Faith:
    Baptist
    No, this is crazy talk. Sowell is saying that he doesn't like Trump or Hillary and he thinks the House of Representatives should override the will of the voters. And that's what it is, their negatives don't matter when they get the votes. Sowell is talking about his own will here.

    So, what, he wants somebody third party to jam up the EC and throw this election to the House? He thinks THAT will heal the country? You never know, the House could flip and then there would a lame duck Congress deciding on an establishment Republican that Sowell likes - that would never go over well with the Democratic Party members nor should it.

    His idea is for some third party person to run and get all the Sanders, Cruz, Rubio, et al supporters. They have nothing in common, you can't unite THAT. Maybe Jeb will run with Hillary and that would satisfy Sowell.
     
  5. Rob_BW

    Rob_BW Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Mar 1, 2015
    Messages:
    4,320
    Likes Received:
    1,242
    Faith:
    Baptist
    [​IMG]

    Popular Vote Totals:
    Clinton 12,438,491
    Sanders 9,302,657

    Trump 10,647,150
    Cruz 7,260,491
    Kasich 3,756,745
    Rubio 3,466,432

     
  6. church mouse guy

    church mouse guy Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    May 23, 2002
    Messages:
    22,050
    Likes Received:
    1,857
    Faith:
    Baptist
    It is in the Constitution so it would not override the will of the voters. Both Trump and Clinton have high negatives and both have severe character defects. It would be a shame to have either one of them as President. Sowell is correct. Look at the foolish remark made by Trump about abandoning South Korea.
     
  7. 777

    777 Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Nov 25, 2006
    Messages:
    3,085
    Likes Received:
    1,190
    Faith:
    Baptist
    Oh, if the majority of EVs isn't reached by a candidate, it's in the Constitution to have the House decide, but talk about selected, not elected.

    It just can't happen this late - the person would have to be able to get on the ballot in all of the states, or somehow the Libertarian or the Green Party would have to play spoiler. Sowell ought to just put the pedal to the metal and form a new party and run himself if he really feels this way -- that neither Trump nor Clinton is qualified. I beg to differ, both of them would be better than what's there now.

    A third party GOPe would either help Hillary win, or do the John Anderson thing, which is nothing. Bernie ought to run third party after Hillary and her super delegates blow him out of the water in a few weeks - THEN, some other GOP could go third party and make it a four-way race. Bernie would actually be able to capture some EVs in Vermont and other places, and enough to stop a EV majority.

    But even if that happened, the winner would end up tarnished like GWB was in 2000 with that contested election or you'd heard elected just with a plurality like it was with Bill Clinton.
     
  8. church mouse guy

    church mouse guy Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    May 23, 2002
    Messages:
    22,050
    Likes Received:
    1,857
    Faith:
    Baptist
    I agree that Dr. Sowell should step up and run. I was also thinking Gingrich--they couldn't talk about his sex life when both Trump and Clinton are the same.

    The House is up for election, as you know, so the American people could factor that into the voting in November. If the GOP could hold the House, then they could pick Kasich, whom they adore.

    I know it is a mess but I think that Trump rejects Tea Party, Reaganite, and other Conservative votes. It would be embarrassing to Trump to have to thank those types for a victory, no?

    The odds favor Hillary--wouldn't she win California and New York?

    As for Bernie, New Hampshire has changed their motto in honor of him. It is now "Live for free or die". AlienAlienAlien
     
  9. InTheLight

    InTheLight Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Dec 17, 2010
    Messages:
    24,988
    Likes Received:
    2,268
    Faith:
    Baptist
    There are ways around the deadlines. Both John Anderson (1980) and Ralph Nader (2000) collected signatures after the deadlines and then successfully sued to get their names on ballots.

    The third party candidate need not get on all the state's ballots, just enough of the bigger states to deny Trump or Clinton the necessary EC votes to reach 270.


    Forming a new party is one way to bypass the need to collect thousands of signatures. In some states, Florida is one, the new party need only list a couple dozen names of party operatives in order to get on the ballot rather than thousands and thousands of voters. I suggest the new party be named The #NeverTrump Party.



    Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk
     
    • Like Like x 1
  10. Rob_BW

    Rob_BW Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Mar 1, 2015
    Messages:
    4,320
    Likes Received:
    1,242
    Faith:
    Baptist
    Lol, that's awesome.Roflmao
     
    • Like Like x 1
  11. HankD

    HankD Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    May 14, 2001
    Messages:
    26,977
    Likes Received:
    2,536
    Faith:
    Baptist
    Again (3rd or 4th time) I'm no fan of Trump.

    But, people are being led by inflamed emotion rather than reason and are becoming irrational on all sides.

    It's too late to introduce a third party, campaign for a write-in or introduce a third Republican member into the race. These are knee jerk irrational tactics IMO.

    In the military science of strategy and tactics you must NEVER be emotional or irrational or you will in all probability lose.

    CNN has Trump now with 1147 delegates - there is a biblical saying "the handwriting is on the wall".
    Forget the nay saying pundits and all their statistics and poll results as well intended as these pundits may be.
    We need to face reality. Trump is the nominee.

    If the overriding strategy is to get the Republican nominee into the Whitehouse then as repulsive as it seems to many of us we need to GET BEHIND TRUMP and support him for the strategic objective to become reality.

    But if it's to "do the right thing" or to "be right" rather than "to win", then do a write in or stay home with the resultant consequence of Hillary or Bernie winning the Whitehouse.

    Personally it seems no matter what I do my conscience will bother me so I am going to be rational according to military science and go for the objective of getting the Republican nominee into the Whitehouse (which nominee at this point in time will in the final determination will in all probability be Trump).

    Now, if some miracle happens (which God may grant and for which I have repeatedly prayed) like the cavalry coming over the hill blowing the victory bugle then I will re-evaluate.

    Otherwise I know what I personally will do.

    Will there be Mea Culpas and weeping and wailing down the road? Maybe.

    HankD
     
    • Winner Winner x 1
  12. InTheLight

    InTheLight Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Dec 17, 2010
    Messages:
    24,988
    Likes Received:
    2,268
    Faith:
    Baptist
    There could even be more than one third party candidate. If the objective is to deny Trump and Clinton a clear 270 electoral votes then the #NeverTrump people could run candidates in whatever states they could get on the ballot. Thus, Mitt Romney could run in Utah, Massachusetts, Nevada, and elsewhere. Ben Sasse could run in Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, etc., Lindsey Graham could run in North and South Carolina. Ted Cruz in Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado, etc.
     
  13. church mouse guy

    church mouse guy Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    May 23, 2002
    Messages:
    22,050
    Likes Received:
    1,857
    Faith:
    Baptist
    Well, you know that I have always respected your opinion, and I still do. I like a good discussion, or debate. So just to clarify, I am actually undecided and am not leaning in any direction. However, I am wondering what conservatives should do? It does seem to me that the GOP needs to award delegates based upon Congressional districts carried so that we are not presented with another liberal who won 40% of the vote. And I do think that Dr. Sowell has a good idea in general.
     
Loading...