Richardcyoung.com

The Online Home of Author and Investor, Dick Young

  • Home
  • How We Are Different
  • About Us
    • Foundation Principles
    • Contributors
  • Investing
    • You’ve Read The Last Issue of Intelligence Report, Now What?
  • Your Survival Guy
  • The Great Reset
  • COVID-19
  • My Rifles
  • Dividends and Compounding
  • Your Security
  • The Swiss Way
  • Dick Young
  • Debbie Young
  • Key West
  • Paris
  • Dick’s R&B Top 100
  • Liberty & Freedom Map
  • Bank Credit & Money
  • Your Survival Guy’s Super States
  • NNT & Cholesterol
  • Work to Make Money/Invest to Save Money
  • Your Health
  • Ron Paul
  • US Treasury Yield Curve: My Favorite Investor Tool

Electoral Count Act of 1887 – A Muddled and Unclear Law

December 29, 2022 By The Editors

At CATO, Andy Craig writes that the Electoral Count Reform Act reflects a bipartisan, bicameral consensus to repudiate the lawless, unconstitutional attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 election. He continues (abridged):

On this day in 1783, George Washington appeared before Congress at the statehouse in Annapolis to resign his military commission at the end of the Revolutionary War. In so doing, he created the first of a series of precedents establishing the peaceful, voluntary transfer of power in the United States, along with his decision to not seek a third term as president in 1796 and, four years later, when John Adams became the first president to concede defeat for re‐​election.

The significance of the moment was not lost at the time. Washington’s former aide‐​de‐​camp, John Trumbull, wrote that his resignation “excites the astonishment and admiration of this part of the world. ‘Tis a Conduct so novel, so inconceivable to People, who, far from giving up powers they possess, are willing to convulse the Empire to acquire more.” Trumbull’s monumental painting of the occasion stands today in the rotunda of the Capitol.

On the other side of the Atlantic, even King George III later remarked that Washington’s action would “place him in a light the most distinguished of any man living” and make him “…the greatest character of the age.”

The idea that the highest power in the land would be voluntarily surrendered, subject to the rule of law, was unheard of at the time. Though the Founders had some contemporary examples of quasi‐​republican government, elective heads of state, and victorious generals after a revolution, these rulers typically held power for life. Figures such as the doge of Venice, the elective kings of the Polish‐​Lithuanian Commonwealth, and Oliver Cromwell after his victory in the English Civil War reigned until death or until forcibly overthrown. The only analogous history Washington’s contemporaries could find was in Cincinnatus, the Roman general and statesman who had likewise surrendered his military command and returned to civilian life more than two thousand years prior. It was an example he embraced and sought to emulate.

It is fitting that on this anniversary, Congress has adopted a crucial measure to ensure the peaceful transfer of power to a new commander‐​in‐​chief every four years. The Electoral Count Reform Act reflects a bipartisan, bicameral consensus to repudiate the lawless, unconstitutional attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 election. It is an exercise in lowercase‑c constitutional lawmaking, remedying the longstanding defects in the procedures for formally confirming who will become the next president.

Along with a broad cross‐​ideological coalition, my Cato colleagues and I have written extensively about the need to reform the Electoral Count Act of 1887, a muddled and unclear law. This arcane statute, little‐​noticed for over a century, opened the door to arguments that Congress could usurp the constitutional role of the states and the Electoral College in deciding who should hold the nation’s highest office. The updated law largely reflects our recommendations and scholarly consensus across the political spectrum. It confirms that the Constitution must be followed at each stage of the process, from the proper certification of presidential electors by the states through to the ceremonial role of the vice president during the electoral count on January 6.

Beyond the technical details, reforming the Electoral Count Act represents a commitment to abide by Washington’s example. No man is above the law, no man is indispensable, and no man rules for life.

Related Posts

  • VIDEO: Rep. Gowdy's Defense of the ENFORCE the Law Act
  • Pennsylvania's Law is Clear: Late Votes Don't Count
  • The Welfare Reform Act of 2011
  • Ban Russian Energy Imports Act
  • Author
  • Recent Posts
The Editors
Latest posts by The Editors (see all)
  • The Telling Depth of Media Propaganda and Censorship - January 27, 2023
  • MEDIA BLACKOUT: No One Will Cover Pharma Exec’s Virus Confession - January 27, 2023
  • California Unions Could Spike the Slowly Recovering Supply Chain - January 26, 2023

Dick Young’s Must Reads

  • Ron Paul: “Freedom and Central Banking Are Not Compatible”
  • Your Survival Guy at Fidelity and Your RMD Compliance
  • Conflict Between Democratic Sovereignty and Transnational Progressivism (Globalism)
  • My Key West Garden Office
  • Why Investors Should Forget Prices and Focus on Income
  • Why Some Kids Won’t Go Back to School, Ever
  • You’ve Read The Last Issue of Intelligence Report, Now What?
  • Joel Salatin and Alfie Oakes, America’s Food Kings
  • 751 “No-Go” Zones in France
  • “An Epic Struggle Over the Definition of America”

Disclosure

RSS Youngresearch.com

  • CATO: Global Freedom Is in Sharp Decline
  • Biden Administration Destroying Retiree Fiduciary Protections
  • 4 Life Changing Words for Your Survival Guy: “You Should Try This”
  • Suddenly, Holding Cash Looks Good Again to Many
  • Anti-Carbon Crusaders in Davos Talk ESG and OPM
  • Is Passive Investing Already Passé?
  • Welcome to Hotel California, Where You Can Never Leave
  • What You’re Telling Me Matters
  • Can Banks Compete with Apple Pay and PayPal?
  • America’s Super States and Stocks that Respect YOU

RSS Yoursurvivalguy.com

  • CATO: Global Freedom Is in Sharp Decline
  • TIME FOR A GONDOLA? Little Cottonwood Canyon Jammed with Traffic
  • Biden Administration Destroying Retiree Fiduciary Protections
  • 4 Life Changing Words for Your Survival Guy: “You Should Try This”
  • Anti-Carbon Crusaders in Davos Talk ESG and OPM
  • Welcome to Hotel California, Where You Can Never Leave
  • What You’re Telling Me Matters
  • The Rich Seek More from Bank Accounts
  • California’s Wealth Tax Will Drive Out Remaining Rich Residents
  • Political Establishment Irate over Conservative Challenges to ESG

Don’t Believe ’em. They’re Coming for Your Gas Stove

NH Republicans Favor DeSantis Over Trump By a Big Margin

CATO: Global Freedom Is in Sharp Decline

The Telling Depth of Media Propaganda and Censorship

MEDIA BLACKOUT: No One Will Cover Pharma Exec’s Virus Confession

TIME FOR A GONDOLA? Little Cottonwood Canyon Jammed with Traffic

Copyright © 2023 | Terms & Conditions | About Us | Dick Young | Archives