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DISMAL DEMOCRACY. Oh no. We're about to ruin Britain. Writing in The Guardian, Paul Harris surveys the American political landscape and decides his side of the pond needs ... more referenda:
It is hard to argue that this is not a healthy thing for democracy. There is little doubt that watching most American politics, the issues are the last thing that ever get discussed. It is all about personality or the familiar litany of simple-sounding hot button issues -- abortion, Iraq, terrorism, tax cuts -- that result in slanging matches instead of reasoned debate. A referendum has a tendency to cut through the politics. It removes the middle man (the politician) and takes the issue straight to the public. In an era of low turnouts and widespread disillusionment with politics, special ballot initiatives almost always have the effect of getting more people to the polls.Yes. To vote against them, as in California, where voters turned out in 2005 to reject eight separate referenda. And it's not that they disagreed with them, either. In fact, some, like measures 78 and 79, did precisely opposite things. It's just that such ballot initiatives have destroyed the state. Voters, who aren't lawmakers and don't have time to dig into the legislative language, have approved a series of superficially worthwhile initiatives that worked by earmarking defined percentages of the state's budget, thus reducing lawmaker flexibility and forcing deeply unpleasant, unpopular, and illogical cuts from the discretionary (but often more important) parts of the budget when times are lean. As Californians eventually noticed that the tiny exercises in direct democracy -- usually funded by massive interests -- were ruining the state, they began voting them down.Meanwhile, Harris bemoans Britain's low turnout numbers -- 60 percent -- and notes that such a majority would be a great turnout in America. Nevertheless, he remains certain referenda will fix everything. "The really important stuff [in America] going on down [ballot], impacting on people's lives and inspiring people in ways politicians can only envy." The turnout for California's 2005 special election, packed chock-full of rejected referenda? 43.5 percent.Don't do it, Britain. Just trust me on this one.
--Ezra Klein
