Being that The House of Representatives is comprised of 435 individuals who are elected into office to represent the citizens of the United States, it would seem that the people who elected these government officials would have their voices heard and reflected in Washington D.C. It seems however, that this is not the case. Through "gerrymandering," district lines that determine who the districts will include, and therefore, who is able to vote for which candidates. In my opinion, this practice is absurd. Take for example, what we talked about in class: the city of Austin is divided into a gnarled and mangled mess that allows the demographics of Democrats to lose their voice against the Republicans. Legislators play with the map like it's a board game or an Etch-a-Sketch, to come up with what most people should readily recognize as a joke. On the other hand, even if we do recognize the ridiculous nature of the scheme, there is nothing we can do about it as long as the Republican Party has control over the state of Texas. The scary thing is, with the option to screw around with district lines, there is very little chance for change.
Unfortunately, this isn’t a problem in the state of Texas alone, but all across the country. Since I lean pretty fervently towards the Democratic Party, the states that play with the lines to support my party don’t bother me quite so much. Weird, huh? I’d like to say that that was a joke, but it’s not. Most people across the country have exactly the same train of thought. Republicans in Texas probably would like things to keep just the way they are, and Democrats in California most likely aren’t looking to favor their Republican citizens. It would seem that Madison’s idea of stability and longevity is working out pretty well – things are staying the same for a long time.
