In 1913 we passed the 17th Amendment to the Constitution, and it has led to all manner of mischief since.
When we started choosing U.S. senators by popular election, it was hailed as a great victory for the democratic impulse. But it also undermined the entire federal system of government that had been so carefully and thoughtfully constructed by the founding fathers. As the recent impeachment of the president teaches, and as the electorate’s general disenchantment with Washington, D.C., reveals, we are all worse off for the change.
