For many, many years Constitutional experts have warned against a very dangerous possibility, a flaw in the system, if you will. Unfortunately, no one has taken them seriously enough to take the appropriate action. Now that possibility has become reality, and it is little wonder that it has been met with public outrage and protest.

The root of this problem is not in the ballots, although that is also a failure of the system. It is not with the state of Florida, as the number of ballots thrown out are not too far out of line with the numbers of ballots that have been thrown out in the past, however preventable these mistakes may be. The root of the problem is not even in the candidates themselves. The real root of the problem is in our failure to dispose of the antiquated Electoral College method of electing a President, long before this election.

The fact of the matter is, it is the Electoral College that actually elects the president. Some states bind their delegates to the popular vote in that state, and some do not. Historically, the delegates do vote according to the outcome of the state's popular vote, but in rare cases, some have been known to buck this mandate and vote their own conscience, which is perfectly legal under the present system. In most states, the candidate who gets the most votes gets ALL of that state's Electoral votes, NOT a proportion equal to the percentage of popular votes received. In the event of an extremely close election, a large state that has an extraordinarily close vote can hang up the whole process. That is exactly what we are faced with today.

With all of that having now been said, let's lay out the facts as they exist today. First, neither candidate can justify conceding the election. The people have spoken, but no one is quite certain what they have said, by the current method of electing our President. Second, the fact that one candidate or the other has a clear margin in the national popular vote is irrelevant to the process; that is a fact, not an opinion. In Florida it is a winner take all situation, as is the case with the vast majority of the states.

Third, and most importantly, SOMEONE will be sworn in at noon on Inauguration Day. The Constitution mandates this very clearly. The possibility of Clinton keeping office for even one minute past noon of that day simply does not exist. If no one is sworn in at that time, then at 12:00 noon, we have NO President. If an injunction is granted against the meeting of the Electoral College, then that becomes a very real possibility. At that point, we would have no other constitutional alternative except to swear in the Speaker of the House as a temporary measure.

Now that the worst of scenarios has occurred, we have no alternative but to let the slow process run it's course. We must get it right, and that is imperative. We must all take a deep breath and let the challenges be heard, let the recount in Florida run it's course. A new vote would do more harm than good at this point, and it cannot be allowed, regardless of how unfair one ballot or the other may have been. With each ballot there are only two choices; count it, or throw it away, and each must be considered with great care. The only restriction that we as a patriotic people should demand is that the Electoral College MUST meet on it's appointed day. Hopefully one candidate or the other has conceded by that time, but if none have conceded, then he must do so after the College has announced their results. Then the defeated candidate has the absolute moral responsibility to throw their support wholeheartedly toward the President Elect, not with mere words, but with tangible actions and support. If the defeated candidate does not do so, then there is a very real danger of a greatly weakened presidency for the remainder of the term of office. In that case all Americans would be the loser.

As is the case with most Americans, this American does have a strong opinion about one of the candidates. I will not state that opinion here. However, I have even stronger opinions about the vital importance of keeping our nation strong and intact. Whoever takes the Oath of Office on Inauguration Day must receive our wholehearted support. It is absolutely the right thing to do. After that day has passed, we must begin the work of fixing the problems that have become so evident to us in this election. After all, if we do not learn from our history, we are certainly doomed to repeat it.