This is a perfect example of where the new Bachman/Palin type Tea Partiers make no sense. The Janey and Johnny-come-latelies (after the original Tea Parties started in 2007 in support of Ron Paul), can’t resolve

Voters are independent because they don’t want to join a party. It’s a fundamental mindset and disagreement of opinion. Richard, the simple question is, do you believe that your right to political participation

I think you’ve captured the crux of the real debate more than anywhere I’ve seen. While most talk about “electing D’s and R’s”, its really about the type of representatives we elect and who they are accountable to.

I am amazed that the numbers are that high. Especially in closed primary states where you can’t even vote unless you join a party.

Even 25% is 10x higher than 2.5% Richard.

To me, it means approaching each issue on its own merits; no self-starters.

Your partisan frame of reference is difficult to wrestle with. I can point to a candidate catering to voters outside his partisan base (Eric Swallwell for example in his defeat of Peter Stark). Here, he had to win

You continue to look at things through a partisan frame of reference. Not about parties. About people. That’s what top-two does; makes the system about representing individuals, not groups of people called political parties.

You continue to look at things through a partisan frame of reference. Not about parties. About people. That’s what top-two does; makes the system about representing individuals, not groups of people called political parties.

All the more important. All parties can participate in the primary. When you live in a dominant one-party state, the candidates today literally don’t have to listen to the voters from the minority party AT ALL.

I have trouble figuring out how common core will do better or end up differently than No Child Left Behind

Top two is about voters and accountability…this is what, I believe, opponents are missing. I appreciate many of the counter-arguments, but the Top-Two can’t be viewed from a candidate-centric lens. The very

We should always use caution going into war. We’ve been a perpetual war state for well over a decade now, although we don’t see it directly at home. This is unfortunate and, unfortunately, could be part of the

Richard, why would this “incorporation of ideas” not occur under top-two? The only difference is that this “incorporation of ideas” would have to occur faster, out of a CANDIDATES necessity of appealing to the

All parties, including third parties, hate California’s new system because it reduces the ability of political parties to control the outcome of the election … its a fundamental shift in the electoral process

I agree, and I think they are…I wrote an article about it a little while back. http://ivn.us/editors-blog/2012/10/06/religion-and-political-parties-are-suffering-from-the-same-problem/

National standardization will always be difficult. Education has traditionally been a state and local responsibility; whether there are mandates or financial “incentives” at the federal level, its a manner of

Baffling and troubling.

Agreed, but you have to balance the need for safety with the burden of over-regulation … if you get tied up in regulation and costly testing/red-tape, California is never going to reduce its energy costs, which

I had no idea conservative c4 spending was so much higher than liberal spending … that’s amazing

Zaremberg is exactly right. Why do we have these crazy restrictions on individual candidates, and then allow independent organizations to collect unlimited money??? Then we wonder with the IE’s have so much power.

Top-two primary isn’t about candidates. It’s about voters. California has the most moderate legislature in decades despite being controlled by a Democratic majority following the first top-two election … in

Hard-times brings risk; desperation strategy. Personally, the entire derivative market on everything, from energy to houses, always create a house of cards … those stacking the top of the deck will always end up

Totally agree as long as they don’t let the Republican machine get ahold of their messaging … once they turn the talk to traditional GOP messages, they turn of tons of those more left-leaning voters that they

The basis of the challenge is interesting … if they successfully argue that the primary is too far out from the general election for them to have a meaningful participation in the election, then what is the

It shouldn’t be a secret that there is a connection between the Obama administration and the tech industry … both pushing against privacy rights.

There will be monumental hurdles to handing everything to the IRS. Bright lines are much needed, but I continue to argue that a lot of problems can be fixed if we just allow unlimited individual donations to

California now has online voter registration. There is no indication of fraud. Further, the numbers support why the GOP would oppose: Democratic registration far outnumbered Republicans … and so did independent

While it may not be “beyond Orwellian,” the concept of wiretapping and collecting data is a major breach of our right to privacy. A free society should include the freedom to withhold your information … security

Ron Paul united more than traditional “libertarians.” I think the most underestimated reason why Ron Paul galvanized such passionate support is not his positions, per se, but the way he articulates them.

Ron

New Jersey has a 47% unaffiliated voters and closed primaries where independents can only vote if they register with a party within 55 days before the election, and where only 8.8% of the people voted last primary

But will the campaign consultants get a hold of her messaging and turn it negative?

Is the high unemployment rate a consequence of ill preparation or a lack of job opportunity?