As you know, LD 1578, which would make Maine a member of the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, has passed in the Maine House and is pending in the Senate. This is a terrible idea, for all the reasons of which you are well aware, and it was unanimously opposed by Republicans in the House.
In hearing all the arguments against this proposal, I have yet to hear anyone pointing out that interstate compacts like this require Congressional approval. See Article I, Section 10 of the U.S. Constitution appearing below.
Attached (and at the link appearing below) is a comprehensive legal dissertation on interstate compacts. It includes a full discussion of how the courts have interpreted this requirement for Congressional approval of these compacts. On page 231 you will see that although there are some compacts that don’t require this approval, they are limited to (1) ones that affect only the member states and that have no possible adverse impact on or disturbance to other states, and (2) ones that do not potentially encroach on or otherwise diminish the authority and prerogatives of the federal government. The National Popular Vote compact directly challenges the checks-and-balances scheme embodied in the Electoral College and in other key constitutional features of our government, and it also directly affects all non-participating states by profoundly affecting campaign practices and the outcome of elections. As an example, under the compact, Hillary Clinton rather than Donald Trump would have won the 2016 election, making a profound difference to all states and diminishing the influence of many states on that election’s outcome. Indeed, it would have changed world history.
Approval can occur at any time, whether in advance of the compact’s being formed, or after it is formed (P. 226). It would fall on Republicans to make sure that the compact is not implemented without the required approval.
The procedure for Congressional approval is to pass an approval bill in both houses by a majority and have it signed by the President. (P. 226)
On page 252 of the dissertation, you will see that there have never been any interstate compacts regarding elections. It tells of two election-related proposals that never materialized, neither of which were like the present proposal.
All Republicans should be aware that a Democrat sweep of the House, Senate, and Presidency in the 2024 Election would almost certainly result in the full implementation of the Popular Vote Compact. We must win at least one of these three races to prevent it from happening. If it does happen, not only will the constitution be wrongly subverted and circumvented, but you may never again see a Republican president, and the interests of rural states will be trampled into the dust.
All Republicans should also be aware of the following plank on the Republican Platform: “Rejecting efforts to abolish or undermine the Electoral College.” Consideration should be given to strengthening this plank by noting that the present interstate compact proposal (LD 1578) constitutes an egregious example of what this plank opposes.
For those who hold office, when you took your oath of office, you swore to uphold the U.S. constitution. By seeking to subvert and circumvent the constitution rather than follow the constitutional process of amendment, LD 1578 is a direct assault on the constitution and requires an all-out defense against it. Anything less is a violation of that oath. You should remind your Democrat colleagues of that.
In conclusion, the State’s Republican leadership should develop a comprehensive and aggressive strategy for seeing to it that the abomination of LD 1578 neither passes in the Maine Senate nor receives Congressional approval.
Robert D. King
Registered Republican
82 Falmouth Road
Falmouth, ME 04105
(207) 781-2767
LINK TO THE DISSERTATION ON INTERSTATE COMPACTS: https://www.every-vote-equal.com/sites/default/files/eve-4th-ed-ch5-web-v1.pdf
*This is a guest post by Robert D. King. The views expressed are not endorsed by the New Gloucester GOP. Anyone wishing to submit opinion articles may do so at newgloucestergop@gmail.com