While I've often supported the idea of a viable 3d party [4th, if you count Libertarian as a viable party], and putting aside for the moment the $$$ needed to mount and sustain any campaign [anywhere, for anything], what are the odds of being able to cohesively unite and organize another national party? ~ I see it in the realm of "possibility", but I don't think we're at that threshold yet ~ and I don't see the built-in manipulations of Americans Elect as winning much general public favor ~ Sooz
December 29, 2011 10:48 AM
Goo-Goo Mischief-MakersBy Ed Kilgore
I've been ignoring the whole Americans Elect phenomenon in the hopes that it would somehow go away, like many earlier do-gooder efforts aimed at creating a third party that avoids the messy process of actually believing in something other than its own nobility. But now that the group is using its hedge-fund donations to buy ballot access in a significant number of states, it's probably time to pay attention. It's been generally assumed that the whole enterprise was created to give Michael Bloomberg the option of running for president if that strikes his fancy, but Americans Elect's ballot lines could become a tempting target for other billionaires or for crazy people. Indeed, as Ruth Marcus recently pointed out, the “democraticâ€