I find myself on both sides of Referendum 70.
R-70 seeks to overturn the Legislature’s recently passed “national popular vote law.”
A Shaw Island man has filed the petition to force a public vote on the law.
He has until June 25 to gather 120,577 valid signatures to suspend the law pending a November vote.
The law would allow the state to agree with other states to give their electoral votes to the candidate who wins the national popular vote. The law would take effect only after a number of states with a majority of electoral votes agree to it. Washington is the fifth state, after Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland and New Jersey, to ratify it. Other states are considering it.
For almost 200 years, electors have ratified the votes of their states. Under this system they would ratify the national vote.
Sen. Joe McDermott, who sponsored the bill in the Legislature, says that the person getting the most votes for president should win the election.
I agree, but I think we could do it honestly.
An honest approach would be to pass a resolution asking Congress to propose a constitutional amendment that would abolish or amend the Electoral College.
Our grandfathers used such an amendment nearly a century ago to change the way we elect U.S. senators. Until the 17th Amendment was ratified in 1913, state legislatures chose the senators. The 17th Amendment let the people of each state elect their senators directly.
McDermott and other proponents of the popular vote law know that such a law would be easier to pass than a constitutional amendment, which requires a two-thirds vote of each house of Congress and ratification by the legislatures of three-fourths of the states.
That means that 13 small states can stop an amendment.
An agreement by a group of states to award their votes according to the national popular vote would be skirting the Constitution, something that doesn’t fit with our tradition of rule of law.
So, let’s find ways to elect a president that fits the will of the people that doesn’t seem like a run around the constitution.
Legislature should let Seattle get its $30 million
When the Legislature meets in a special session, it should pass a bill to let Seattle continue the restaurant and rental-car tax to rebuild Key Arena.
This would allow Seattle to get an extra $30 million from the owners of the former Sonics team if Seattle doesn’t get a new NBA team within five years.
I ordinarily oppose public money for professional sports stadiums, but I support this because it would be part of the upgrade of Seattle Center.
The Legislature is under pressure because Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels made a bad deal when he allowed the team’s owners to break their lease. The deal required the owners to pay the $30 million only if the Legislature acts this year.
Evan Smith can be reached at entopinion@heraldnet.com.
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