Warren May Be Dumb, But Not Stupid [OPINION]

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) thinks it's time to do away with the Electoral College and instead elect our leaders by popular vote. She may be dumb, but she is not stupid.

In the old days, Democrats were able to win national elections with a more centrist message that attracted voters from across the heartland as well as in the population centers. With a sharp turn to the left and a failure to deliver on past promises, their base has been pretty much limited to the urban centers. Places such as Chicago, Boston, New York, L.A. You cannot win elections that way. At least not with the Electoral College in play.

Warren, who is struggling for an identity in the campaign for the Democrat nomination for president, addressed the issue during an appearance on CNN while campaigning in Mississippi.

“I believe we need a constitutional amendment that protects the right to vote for every American citizen and makes sure that vote gets counted," she said. "We need to put some federal muscle behind that, and we need to repeal every one of the voter suppression laws that is out there.”

The people in the mostly African American audience went nuts when Warren declared her support for repealing the Electoral College. One woman was in tears. These poor folks have been brainwashed into believing that their vote would matter more without the Electoral College, when in fact the opposite is true.

Hillary Clinton won the popular vote in 2016 against Donald Trump but Trump won the Electoral College vote, which allowed him and not Clinton to move into 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

What happened in 2016 is a perfect example of why the system was designed the way that it was. Without the Electoral College, Clinton would have won the election by just winning the popular vote in a few population centers. The vote in the vast majority of counties all across the country would have been nullified by the vote in Los Angeles alone. Now that is voter suppression.

Ditching the Electoral College would require amending the Constitution, a lengthy and difficult process. It is not likely to happen.

Democrats now understand that their far-left-of-center message is so unpopular with American voters that they need to change the rules in order to win. They are also advocating for non-citizen immigrants and 16-year-olds to be able to vote.

Democrats should really just find a message that appeals to the majority of Americans if they want to remain relevant. Otherwise, they may as well just fold their tent and call it a day.

Barry Richard is the host of The Barry Richard Show on 1420 WBSM New Bedford. He can be heard weekdays from noon to 3 p.m. Contact him at barry@wbsm.com and follow him on Twitter @BarryJRichard58. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author.