Recall Elections

Recently, I wrote:

I heard on the radio today murmurs of a recall effort against Governor Schwartznegger. I would support this recall. He has expanded environmentalist regulations and socialized medicine in California. The elitists would wring their hands and moan that California voters are weakening government by recalling their Governor every few years. Screw ‘em. The recall would put RINO’s on notice that when they act like Democrats they suffer.

I came across this piece by John Lewis on the last California recall election.

The clause in California's constitution that permits this is a deadly concession to democracy, and a repudiation of the constitution's own principles. A constitution that allows the people to override its own mandates provides no means to stop such popular referenda from becoming the norm. Such a constitution sows the seeds of its own destruction.

If not stopped, such a trend could lead our state and federal governments to mutate into species akin to countries that recall their officials every few months. We could see budgets, judicial appointments, and enforcement decisions crafted to win popularity contests. This would be democracy--placing the officials under the direct and immediate thumb of popular demagogues--and the death of the republic.

I can see his point. Regular recalls would turn politicians into demagogues (even more than they already are). I retract my earlier stand. It’s too bad -- I think another shock, following last November’s shock, would be good for the Republicans.