An urgent primer on what can be done to combat emerging threats to the core of U.S. Democracy––presidential elections.
In 2000, we learned that an exceptionally close presidential election can produce chaos, because we have no reliable Constitutional mechanism for resolving disputes. Joe Biden just won a presidential election that was extremely close in a number of states. Trump—and his many supporters—refused to accept the legitimacy of those vote results, leading to an insurrection at the Capitol Building. Where do we go from here?
In A Short History, Constitutional scholar Alan Hirsch presents a concise history of presidential elections that resulted in crises and advocates clear, common-sense solutions, including abolishing the Electoral College and the creation of a permanent, non-partisan Presidential Election Review Board to prevent or remedy future crises.
"Hirsch does a very good job of offering historical context to illuminate the present—and the terrifying future. His imaginative proposals are probably too sensible to be implemented in an age of parochial partisanship."—David Shipler, former reporter for the New York Times and Pulitzer Prize winner
"Democracy is broken, but as Alan Hirsch explains, it really doesn't have to be. This is the real story of how our voting system became so vulnerable to attacks from within and without, told with precision, verve, and even hope. This is the way out."—Douglas Rushkoff, author of Team Human
"This is a must-read for anyone who cares about safeguarding presidential elections―which should be everyone."—Evan Caminker, Professor and former Dean, University of Michigan Law School
Table of Contents, Introduction, and First Two Chapters from A Short History
RSS Privacy Policy All imagery and content © 2021 City Lights. All rights reserved.
