States of Nonsense
Alexander Hamilton is rolling over in his grave. Hamilton was the founding father who created the much-maligned Electoral College. Hamilton's equality has lasted as long as the Republic. The beauty of the Electoral College is that states with larger populations do not determine who will be the president of the United States. It means that a candidate must win most of the Electoral votes and not states with the largest populations. If that were the case, presidential candidates would campaign exclusively in California, New York, Texas, and Florida.
Some states have decided that they know more than Hamilton and the founding fathers. They've recently voted that they will ignore the Electoral College results and just let the creation of the popular vote determine their vote for president.
Can they get away with it? I would expect several constitutional groups to sue these states that have decided to act unconstitutionally rightfully. I blame former President Obama's decision not to prosecute states who broke federal law by legalizing marijuana. States could and did make up their laws. Now several states want to make up their election laws.
Are you wondering how many states have decided to give the constitution the boot? Fifteen states and the District of Columbia have made a move, reports NBC News. If you're wondering how many Electoral College votes those states contain? The answer is 196 votes. You only need 270 to win.
Here's a list of the states that are currently in violation of federal law: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington.
The Trump Administration has yet to comment on the popular vote movement.