The 17th Amendment Scores a Tiny Little Point
The 17th Amendment Scores a Tiny Little Point when virtue resides pretty much nowhere CHRIS BRAY John Adams anticipated the arrival of Gavin Newsom, and the laugh-out-loud horrible appointment he just made to the Senate. But let’s start at the beginning. The Constitution initially assigned the choice of senators to the state legislatures, on the reasoning that it would give the states a degree of direct influence in the national government, balancing the federal system. Senators were to be older than representatives, and to be citizens for at least nine years, because they needed the maturity and independence to serve in the body that gave advice and consent in foreign affairs. But Publius also hinted that senators appointed by state legislatures would come from state legislatures, where men would choose their wisest colleagues to represent their interests in the central government. The upper house would therefore be filled with statesmen , well-trained in the purposes...
