Cornering Mark Cuban

By Libby

I wasn't going to blog about Mark Cuban's oblique endorsement of Bloomberg but I liked Dr. Taylor's analysis so much that I decided it was worth noting. Read all of Taylor's post, but here's the money quote.

I will say this, Cuban does suggest, in a sideways fashion, a truth about what might help American politics: more competition is something to be valued. 1 However, under the prevailing rules of the game, we will always2 find ourselves with a two party dominant system with two major party candidates vying for the White House every four years. If Cuban wants a different set of choices, he needs to advocate constitutional/electoral reform, not fantastical billionaire messiahs.

Heck, imagine what the race would look like if we switched to a straight popular vote with a 50% requirement to win. This would almost certainly lead to more viable candidates competing to make it to the second round.

I have to admit, I also wish for a champion to come riding out of the wilderness to save us. I pine for a Jimmy Stewart/Mr. Smith Goes to Washington type to inspire the masses and clean up the joint but I'm realistic enough to understand that's just not going to happen. However, Steven's suggestion here could go a long way towards repairing a broken system. I don't see any reason not to try it.