Clearly, a lot of people are pissed off at Iowa and New Hampshire for many reasons.
- They aren't as diverse
- Des Moines is the largest city in either of these states, with a metro population of 532,000...92nd largest in the US
- Most Americans do NOT live in rural areas
Now, considering that the smart ones here at dKos know that money is terrible in regards to politics, we can eliminate some alternatives to the IA and NH first system. If there was a regional primary system (10 states at a time) or a national primary, then Rudy and Hilary would be the two winners and no one else would have a shot. So those two ideas suck.
With the IA and NH first system, you can have a story like Mike Huckabee (or Howard Dean back in 03, until his fading). Romney has spent 100 times more than Huck in Iowa, but because of the nature of the state, he's leading right now...without a ton of money. That's good for American politics. (Again, not that I like his politics....just to make sure everyone's clear on that)
Again, it's GOOD for American politics that a viable candidate without much money actually has a chance. It's like livin' the American political dream.
So, since a National primary and a regional primary are bad ideas, due to influence of money, we look to other single states that would inevitably need to go first. Having more than one state go first doesn't make sense, because it's just increasing the terrible influx of money. Again, less money in politics is a beautiful thing that should be striven for.
So what states can go first in our new system?
Here's what we need: (You may believe that my rankings are arbitrary, but I don't care)
- A state with a population of less than 6 million.
- A state with low advertising costs
- A state that isn't too geographically huge
- A state that isn't bleeding Red or Blue. A swing state preferably
Clearly, California is out....as they miss all four of the marks here.
- New York, TX, FL, IL, PA, OH, MI, GA, NC, NJ, VA, MA, WA, IN, AZ...too big.
Missouri, Tennessee, Wisconsin, and Minnesota are as big as I would go, population wise.
- Pretty much takes out the states above
- Alaska, Montana, Wyoming, New Mexico, and Hawaii (Obvious reasons)
- Utah, Idaho, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Maryland, Connecticut, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Arkansas, Kansas, Rhode Island, Delaware, N and S Dakota, and Vermont
So that leaves:
Missouri, Tennessee, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Colorado, Kentucky, South Carolina,
New Hampshire, Maine, West Virginia, Nevada, Iowa, Oregon, Vermont.
There are 14 states that I think could be potentially good first picks. So, since everyone is pissed at NH and IA, let’s have these 14 states rotate every four years.
2012 Missouri and Vermont
2016 Tennessee and Maine
2020 Wisconsin and Oregon
2024 Minnesota and West Virginia
2028 Colorado and New Hampshire
2032 Kentucky and Iowa
2036 South Carolina and Nevada
There. There’s your new plan.
So if you're angry that you're state has been left out, tough. I (and you) hate money in politics. It has ruined democracy more than anything else in this country. Money and politics are evil. You know it, I know it...and I will fight tooth and nail against anyone who wants to INCREASE money's influence in this process.
Good luck to your favored candidate in Iowa, and here's hoping for a netroots victory. Per my previous diary: A Netroots victory = A defeat for Hilary Clinton.