Something Serious For A Change

If there is ever to be any real change in American politics, Barack Obama's mind-numbing, sci-fi like mantra aside, it will have to begin with campaign time limits. The limiting of campaign funds would be hugely helpful, but that idea will remain forever on the wish list.

What is a real possibility however, and REAL change indeed, is to shorten the time period anyone is allowed to actively campaign for the office of President of the United States.

I can hear the screaming now, but I'll say it anyway. The idea that caucuses and elections in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, whose combined populations of 8,711,083 or 3% of the nation, should exert as much influence as they do over digital and traditional media is ridiculous.

The plan currently under consideration calls for just one primary, a national primary for each political party, to choose its candidate. Campaigning in that primary is limited to six months, beginning twelve months before the presidential election is to be held.

After the selection of candidates in the National primary, campaigns for the actual office itself begins immediately and last for another six months culminating on election day, the Tuesday following the first Monday of the upcoming November.

Put differently, the entire Presidential election campaign period last from November to November beginning one year prior to the election. There are no Constitutional objections to this plan. In fact the only thing the Constitution addresses with respect to Presidential elections is that hide-bound holdover, the Electoral College.

Remember these primaries were designed to reduce the influence of party political conventions and to give the average Jo/Joe a shot at registering their opinion, are held at the pleasure of the respective parties themselves. The only constitutional item in play here is the election date itself.

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In the home stretch of an interminably long and thoroughly boring Presidential race, truth will be the greatest casualty. The best arbiter of truth and misleading spin in politics is The Annenberg Political Fact Check, a project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania and is unbiased in its appraisal of candidate's ads, speeches, claims and statements.

Those few of us who seek the veritas in politics will appreciate this effort.