Do voters really want to lose their right to elect their own representatives?

Few Americans are aware of the 17th amendment.  But there are Utah Republicans who are talking alot about it.  To put it bluntly, they don't like it.  Senator Curt Bramble of Provo has criticized the 17th amendment as taking power away from the states.  Republican Senate candidate Tim Bridgewater also has dissed the amendment.   Others have gone further publicly and called for it to be repealed.  Republican Senate candidate Mike Lee wants to get rid of it.  So does former Republican Senate candidate Cheryl Eagar.  Senator Howard Stephenson, who currently represents the northern part of Utah County and the southern part of Salt Lake County, calls it a mistake and also wants it repealed.  

What, exactly, is the 17th amendment?  It is a constitutional amendment that was passed in 1913 to give the voters the power to elect senators rather than state legislators.  The amendment was adopted by Congress and ratified by the states because the U.S. Senate was viewed as out of touch with the ordinary people.  It was known as the millionaires' club because senators were so rich they were buying seats in the Senate by paying off state legislators to elect them.

The amendment passed because everyone realized that a small group of politicians shouldn't be deciding who gets to be members of one-half of the Congress!   That fact is no less true today than it was then.  

So why do these Republican candidates and public officials, including Utah County legislators, want to do away with an amendment that gives us, the people, the power to elect our own representatives?  It is hard to understand why they support this crazy idea.  

There's no clamor among the people for losing our right to elect our own senators. In fact, the opposite is true.  People want more say over their representatives, not less.  Taking power away from the people and giving it to other elected officials doesn't make sense.

The supporters of repeal argue that it would restore states' rights.  But it wouldn't do that at all.  It would merely shift power from the voters in each state to the state legislature.  The voters have the power to enforce states' rights already.  That is through the ballot box.  

Today, it is possible for voters in Utah to speak up and elect who they want for the U.S. Senate.  With repeal, that right would be taken away and given to a small body of state legislators.  That's alot of power they would have!  Each of us should ask ourselves the basic question:  Do I trust my state legislator enough to give him or her the power to elect who will represent me in the U.S. Senate or would I rather be able to make that decision myself?  

The answer is obvious, which is why the idea is so silly.  But leave it to some of our incumbents to push their extremist views regardless of the consequences to the rest of us.  It's time for them to be defeated at the polls so we can return to some common sense.