I went to the bank yesterday to get a document notarized, and struck up a great conversation with the lovely associate manager, Roxana. Noticing an Eastern-European accent, I asked her about her background, and she said her family came to the United States from Romania in the 80’s, fleeing the Ceausescu regime. I mentioned that I don’t think many Americans know much about Romania, nor how truly evil Nikolae Ceausescu was. I asked her what…
What does last night’s New Hampshire primary tell us about the developing 2020 presidential race? Here are my top three takeaways: The chances of a brokered (i.e., contested) convention have never been higherTrump demonstrated record turnout for an incumbent, suggesting a core of enthusiasm which has expanded since 2016Warren’s campaign is toast: does she position for a Sanders running-mate nod? I also think we’re underestimating the relatively high likelihood of some kind of “black swan”…
I’m with Mitt Romney: I’d vote YES on Article I and NO on Article II. The enormous powers of the Executive Branch should not be marshaled or weaponized to damage, investigate or monitor political opponents. That’s a terrible precedent. This goes for a president coaxing foreign allies either with favor or via threatened-withheld resources to get them to launch a damaging investigation, or getting them to announce one. And it also applies to allowing a…
The Constitution’s apportionment clause makes the wealth taxes advanced by both Senators Sanders and Warren clearly unconstitutional. That’s not to say a wealth tax is impossible. Just as when federal income taxes were enacted, there is a way to have a legal wealth tax: the Constitutional Amendment process. But the Constitution first requires two thirds of the House and two thirds of the Senate to pass an Amendment. Then it requires 75% (i.e., 38 of…
The costs of the Sanders and Warren Plans are staggering. Sanders and Warren Would Each More than Double the Size of the Federal Government.
There’s a new City Council in Seattle. If human beings actually behave as they appear to believe, we’re in for some major improvements.
Reflecting on the first phase of the Alignvote project, and issuing the call for volunteers or media partners if they’d like to bring Alignvote to their local election.
Esek Hopkins was the brother of Stephen Hopkins, Governor of Rhode Island and Signer of the Declaration of Independence. He was appointed the first Commander of the Continental Navy in 1775. A few months later, the Continental Congress declared independence, and Commander Hopkins suddenly became the most powerful naval officer in the new United States. Despite their decision to bestow this position on him, Commander Esek Hopkins held the Continental Congress in very low regard.…
Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve added a few enhancements to Alignvote. Summary of Sentiment How are end-users answering the survey? Now you can see a summary. From the Voters Guide homepage, see the “Voter Sentiment” section. This shows you a rolled-up summary of how people are answering the quiz. As clearly described at the top of the page, this is NOT a scientific poll, nor is it represented as such. There are numerous…
I’ve added a Discussion Board for Alignvote. This will make it easier to share videos, media and links to articles about the issues in the Seattle City election. I’ve added the latest debate videos to the appropriate City Council District topic areas. The one rule: Be Nice, Be Respectful. Visit the discussion board here.