Is this Democracy???

So now that a handful of voters have spoken in a few small states (and a couple bigger ones, but those didn't count because they were "too early"), the presidential contenders have dropped to two on one side and two and a half on the other, weeks and months before the vast majority of voters will have any possible voice in these two contests.  Is this democracy???

I know the party activists in Iowa and New Hampshire like to think they are the standard-bearers for the nation.  I'm sure it feels really special to meet every candidate for president at your local coffee shop in your town with a population of 1000.  I'm sure it's exciting to have national news crews swarm your town for weeks, interviewing you about your encounters with the presidential candidates and your impressions of them all. 

I've seen and heard many of these interviews over the years.  Comments like "he seemed so sincere," "she seemed nicer than I thought," or even "I liked what he said about [fill in anything]."  Okay, so what did he or she say about [fill in anything]??  They never say; that's not the point.  The point is that Harry and Louise at the coffee shop liked it, so you should too, whatever it was.  I have never heard anyone in any of these interviews say anything that swayed my opinion about any of the candidates.

Yet these people have so much power under our current system that by the time people in most other states get to vote or caucus, many candidates have already called it quits.  Is this any way to decide who becomes the leader of our country?

Comments

[Jeffery Ford]

I totally agree with you. The early states have way too much sway in determining future candidates. Some of those interviews are more humorous than informative.

I'm sure there are many great citizens in Iowa and New Hampshire- but they certainly can't speak for all Americans.