Welcome this episode of the Castle Doctrine!
Today we're talking about the 17th Amendment of the Constitution. If you're unfamiliar, the 17th Amendment changed how US Senators are elected. Before the 17th Amendment was ratified in 1913, Senators were appointed by the state legislatures. After the 17th Amendment, Senators were elected directly by the people.
The argument at the time was that the appointment process at the state level had become corrupt and needed reform. However, in a practical sense, the result was that the states lost their check on federal power.
The idea of Congress having two houses, the House of Representatives was that We the People's check on federal power and the Senate was the states' check on federal power. The repeal of the 17th Amendment will restore that state check on federal power.
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