Washington Post Op-ed: ‘Give the Elites a Bigger Say in Choosing the President’

The Washington Post is taking criticism for an op-ed published Tuesday by Marquette University political science professor Julia Azari, titled: “It’s time to give the elites a bigger say in choosing the president.”

Citing the “rocky start” to the Democratic Party’s presidential primary, Azari suggests that the process of choosing the nominee be taken from the people and returned to the politicians:

The current process is clearly flawed, but what would be better? … A better primary system would empower elites to bargain and make decisions, instructed by voters.

One lesson from the 2020 and 2016 election cycles is that a lot of candidates, many of whom are highly qualified and attract substantial followings, will inevitably enter the race. The system as it works now — with a long informal primary, lots of attention to early contests and sequential primary season that unfolds over several months — is great at testing candidates to see whether they have the skills to run for president. What it’s not great at is choosing among the many candidates who clear that bar, or bringing their different ideological factions together, or reconciling competing priorities. A process in which intermediate representatives — elected delegates who understand the priorities of their constituents — can bargain without being bound to specific candidates might actually produce nominees that better reflect what voters want.

Streamer Clavicular facing criminal charges after shooting alligator

North Korea drops reunification goal from constitution after 70 years

Illegal immigrant case spirals into controversy after ill-timed press release

Breaking: FBI Raids Office of Top Virginia Democrat

FBI raids Spanberger ally office as federal corruption probe targets cannabis business

Chicago knows what happens when Ken Griffin turns on a city, now Mamdani may find out

Video: Racist Dem Nick Fuentes, Whom Media Called ‘Right Winger,’ Demands Trump Impeachment – It Was All a Lie

Coast Guard asks public to identify sailboat moored near vessel where Lynette Hooker vanished in Bahamas

Idaho murders evidence leak triggers criminal investigation for insider who spilled secrets: report

Alert: In Dramatic Climate Update, Al Gore Warns of Impending Global… Cooling!

Trump commits to opening Strait of Hormuz if Iran agrees to deal on the table

Dolly Parton Shares ‘Some Good News and a Little Bad News’ with Fans

Iowa Dem’s Muslim prayer, ‘too white’ comments resurface in tight House race: ‘Downright shameful’

Former ICE official loses GOP primary in key battleground district Republicans are hoping to flip

Vance sells Iran war to the heartland as Rubio charms Washington

Azari suggests that the parties should use what she calls “preference primaries,” which would “allow voters to rank their choices among candidates, as well as to register opinions about their issue priorities.”

After a perfunctory voting process, wlites would be able to choose a nominee based on information about what the voters want.

She acknowledges that the idea is “labor-intensive and a little risky.”

The Post is owned by Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, who is the world’s richest man. The paper’s slogan, adopted as an intended rebuke to President Donald Trump, is “Democracy dies in darkness.”

That phrase was trending on Twitter on Wednesday morning as readers reacted ironically to the op-ed.

The headline right below “democracy dies in darkness” is some A+ work

— Greg (@gwiss) February 19, 2020

>"Democracy dies in darkness"

>"Do people actually want more Democracy in their lives" pic.twitter.com/p7fPf5dFVX

— ｓａｌ🌹🏴🏴‍☠️ (@ProjektVayo) February 19, 2020