the Alito Senate vote by population (updated)

If we give each Senator the weight of half the population of his or her home state this is how the current Yes and No votes on the Senate floor break down.

Senators voting "Yes" on Alito : 145,147,446 citizens
Senators voting "No" on Alito: 131,456,084 citizens
Undeclared Senators: 16,181,968 citizens

Since most of the undeclared Senators are Democrats, these numbers may well get closer.

(The numbers have been updated to reflect: Susan Collins (R) of Maine is a YES. Robert Byrd (D) of VA is a YES. Thomas Carper (D) of Delaware is a NO, Stevens (R) of Alaska YES, Pryor (D) of Arkansas NO, Obama (D) Illinois, NO, Cantwell (D) of Washington is NO. Dayton (D) of MN is NO, Sarbanes (D) of Maryland is NO.)

These totals, of course, have no bearing on the Senate vote. The Senate, per our Constitution, has absolutely nothing to do with the population of the individual states. Every Senator's vote is equal.

I publish these numbers strictly to make a political point: don't let the GOP and the media tell you that Alito respresents "clear majority" views in this country. He doesn't. Every Senator has to go home and justify this vote. A list of the states whose two Senators have split their vote is illustrative:

Florida (Nelson No, Martinez Yes)
Colorado (Allard Yes, Salazar No)
Oregon (Smith Yes, Wyden No)
Iowa (Grassley Yes, Harkin No)
Nevada (Ensign Yes, Reid No)
New Mexico (Domenici Yes, Bingaman No)
Montana (Burns Yes, Baucus No).

That list (FL, CO, IA, NV, NM and MT all went for George Bush in 2004) should send a word of caution to GOP partisans: either party steamrolls the country at its own peril.

Elections, as the GOP Senators have endlessly pointed out, have consequences. Of course, what one party does with its slim majority and how it interprets its "mandate" has consequences as well. This country is, in many ways, split down the middle. That has consequences and repercussions for both sides. Pretending otherwise is a game for fools.

Comments

Anonymous said…
This is BooMan. I forgot my password. William Byrd of Virginia is probably supposed to Robert Byrd of West Virginia.
kid oakland said…
Thanks, booman

that can only be ascribed to brain freeze.
Unknown said…
Thanks for the analysis, k/o, it puts this whole charade in perspective. I hope Kerry runs up a high phone bill from Switzerland as he calls his colleagues in the Senate to urge a filibuster. They must fight!

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