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.

Secret Service Agent Shoots Himself While Working on Jill Biden’s Detail

Mike Johnson splits from Thune with eight-week DHS funding bill

Hollywood Star Sounds Off About Celeb Politics: You Make ‘Half Your Audience Despise You’

Trump will ask Congress to pass additional farm relief amid Iran war price spikes

Judge freezes Trump admin move against AI firm, fueling battle over security authority

Greg Bovino is writing a book to ‘memorialize’ the Border Patrol officers on the front lines of Trump’s deportation operation

‘Ship has sailed’: This is what Dems won’t get in DHS deal after shunning GOP

Watch: Trump Roasts Fox News Polls While Live on the Network, Calls for Co-Host’s Removal

Hackers tied to Iran breach FBI director’s personal email and post private images

WATCH: Scalise’s Staff Found the DHS Quote Hakeem Jeffries Hoped Was Gone Forever, Now Scalise Is on the Floor Reading It to the Whole World

Secret Service agent assigned to Jill Biden injured in ‘negligent discharge’ at Philadelphia airport

AOC says politicians, especially Democrats, should promise not to accept ‘AI money’

Sheridan Gorman’s university newspaper touts ICE tracker after freshman allegedly murdered by illegal alien

Movie Review: Hopeful Comedy ‘Home Delivery’ Delivers Heart, Laughs, and Free Admission for Expectant Mothers

Savannah Guthrie to return to Today show after absence

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