Routine day in Electoral College

In choosing president, members stick to tried, true Texas tradition.

Good

news, my fellow Texans. Once again, our state’s fine reputation remains un besmirched by any disgrace that would befall us by harboring a faithless elector.

We’re talking here about our 38 Electoral College members. You know, the only Texans whose votes really matter when it comes to handing the White House keys to someone.

When the electors met Monday in the Texas House, the faith was kept, both in opening and closing prayers of a specific faith (Christianity) and in reflecting the popularvote outcome (Republican). Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan (remember them?) each got all 38 votes.

I always enjoy the electors’ meeting, a live performance of the oft-debated way we pick presidents and vice presidents. It’s always a bit weird when performed by electors supporting the losing candidates.

“Your willingness to serve as an elector helps makes democracy possible,” Texas Secretary of State John Steen (remember him? No, you don’t; he’s new.) said in getting the meeting going Monday.

He also reminded electors there’d be “light refreshments” in his office afterward. Nice. Light refreshments also help make democracy possible.

After some public swearing

(oath, not epithets) and some private voting, Steen did some tallying and announced the unanimous results of the separate votes for president and vice president.

With that, at long last, the 2012 presidential election in Texas finally was over, as if there ever was any doubt about the outcome.

The Electoral College (a phrase that does not appear in the U.S. Constitution, which does refer to “electors”) is a frequent target of folks (a group probably not including George W. Bush) who believe presidents should be picked by nationwide popular vote.

The National Archives says there have been more than 700 proposals for constitutional amendments to change the Electoral College system in one way or another. That’s more than on any other subject. Go to nationalpopularvote. com to see an interesting, ongoing attempted insurrection against the Electoral College.

Another historical note from the archives: “The 14th Amendment provides that state officials who have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the United States or given aid and comfort to its enemies are disqualified from serving as electors. This prohibition relates to the post-Civil War era.”

None of the GOPchosen electors in the chamber Monday looked old enough to have participated in the Civil War, and none, at that moment, were openly calling for insurrection or rebellion.

And, by voting unanimously for Romney and Ryan, all kept the faith, though Texas is among 24 states that do not legally require electors to vote for the presidential candidate that prevailed in the popular vote.

Electors who vote for somebody other than the popular-vote winner are known as faithless electors, the rarest of the Electoral College members.

Stats show that in the history of the United States, more than 99 percent of electors have