Clayton Cramer discusses repealing the 17th Amendment and gerrymandering, which I've written about many times before, and one of his emailers suggests that, as I've said, the House and Senate have swapped roles, in a sense. House seats are controlled by the state legislatures via gerrymandering, and Senate seats are filled directly by the voters.

Still, I'd favor a return to the old system. Eliminate gerrymandering (not hard to do, if there the popular will existed to try) and repeal the 17th. The main effects would be to bring the House back closer to the people it represents, and to give the states themselves a hand in the federal government. Consider, for example, how a legislature-selected Senator might deal with the feds differently on the issues of illegal immigration and the ever-expanding Commerce Clause.

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