‘They just want to work around it’: Jake and Spike square off over WA’s push to bypass the Electoral College

KIRO host Jake Skorheim criticized Washington for joining a multistate agreement that would give its electoral votes to whoever wins the national popular vote. He argued that the agreement is a way around the Constitution. KIRO host Spike O’Neill leaned toward electing the president by popular vote and argued that the majority should decide.

“There’s 18 states that have signed up, Washington included, which I think is horrible,” Jake said on “The Jake and Spike Show” on KIRO Newsradio.

The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact includes 18 states and Washington, D.C., which together hold 222 electoral votes, according to Ballotpedia. It would take effect once its members reach 270 electoral votes, the number needed to win the presidency. The compact doesn’t abolish the Electoral College. Instead, member states would award all their electoral votes to the winner of the national popular vote.

Jake compared the compact to how Washington adopted its income tax.

“This is in our Constitution, so they want to not change the Constitution. They just want to work around it, just like Democrats with the income tax in Washington,” Jake said.

Spike pointed out that a constitutional amendment to change the Electoral College would need a two-thirds vote in both houses of Congress and approval from 38 states.

“There’s too much common sense, thankfully,” Jake said.

Spike: Electoral College is ‘just a delivery service’

Spike opened by acknowledging the debate.

“There are strong arguments on both sides of this,” Spike said.

He explained that the system began when electors were supposed to be learned individuals who would weigh candidates for their states. That was before mass communication and easy travel. Today, he argued, voters are well informed, and the electors only pass along each state’s results.

“And now the Electoral College is pretty much just a delivery service,” Spike said.

Jake: Founders guarded against ‘tyranny of the majority’

Jake explained that each state gets one electoral vote for each congressional district plus two for its senators. That gives Washington 12, Wyoming three, and California 54. He believes the founders built the system to protect against mob rule.

Spike offered a different word for it.

“Or democracy,” Spike said.

When Spike asked whether a majority of voters should decide, Jake didn’t hesitate.

“No,” he said.

Jake argued that the founders studied earlier nations that fell to majority rule and wanted to avoid the same fate. He read from the Federalist Papers.

“It is of great importance in a republic not only to guard the society against the oppression of its rulers, but to guard one part of the society against the injustice of the other part,” Jake read.

He warned that a national popular vote would let candidates ignore most of the country.

“If you have somebody running for high office, you don’t even have to consider anywhere that’s not the coastal giant cities,” Jake said.

Spike pushed back.

“But you don’t think that the majority of Americans should get to pick how the country is run, at least for the cycle of that electorate until the next electorate?” Spike asked.

He pointed out that the country already elects nearly everything else by majority.

“It’s majority rule. We elect everything on majority rule,” Spike said.

Jake countered that the system is designed to protect smaller states.

“It’s to protect smaller states from the bully big states,” Jake said.

‘What if Bellevue had to go with what Seattle agrees to?’

To make his case, Jake compared Seattle and Bellevue. He argued that Seattle has enough voters to impose its policies on neighboring cities that don’t share them.

“What if Bellevue had to go with what Seattle agrees to? Because Seattle is a bigger population center. Would that be fair?” Jake asked.

Spike agreed it wouldn’t be fair. He pointed out that Washington’s electoral votes already go to whoever wins the statewide vote.

Swing states and small states

Spike argued that the current system doesn’t help small states as much as it promises. Instead, he believes it makes a handful of battlegrounds, including Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Georgia, and Florida, the focus of every campaign.

“Yeah, I know. I get that, but nobody campaigns in these smaller states. You just win those swing states. That’s when people are getting attention,” Spike said.

Jake doubted that a popular vote would change that.

“You think Wyoming is going to get one person stopping by to check on seeing what Wyoming needs?” Jake asked.

“I don’t think so,” Spike responded.

“There you go. Thank you for the argument,” Jake said.

Watch the full discussion in the video above.

Listen to “The Jake and Spike Show” weekdays from noon to 3 p.m. on KIRO Newsradio 97.3