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.

Internet Demands Probe After Mitch McConnell’s Wife Reportedly Revealed to Have CCP Ties

Kentucky Ostrich Farm Offers Alternative for People Allergic to Red Meat After Tick Bites: ‘Similar to Steak’

Beauty school moms caught in accreditation crossfire as Trump admin weighs consequential decision

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announces distribution of more than 7 million free eggs statewide

Amy Acton cried on the job, once found ‘curled up’ on floor before COVID meeting during tenure as Ohio health official: Staffers

RNC leaves convention seat empty for Charlie Kirk one year after assassination

Lindsay Clancy juror who backed the defense also publicly cheered Karen Read’s acquittal

Florida woman accused of DUI crashes SUV into parked car, then makes bizarre plea to police caught on camera

White House stays quiet as UK leads 11 other countries with sanctions on Israeli ‘settler terrorists’

Trump Signs Orders to Block Certain Canadian Products from Being Sold in the U.S.

Anthropic Researchers Say AI Could ‘Kill All Humans’ Within Next Decade

Emergency slide sparks questions on Trump’s new Air Force One before president reveals why

‘Alien harboring’ accusations fly as DC-area county spends taxpayer funds to blunt ICE

Report: Jimmy Kimmel’s Current Season Will Be His Last at ABC

Merz accuses AfD of ‘ethnic cleansing’ agenda, postpones call with Trump after president praises party

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