Running for President

1996 NADPS Director William H. Heim on the search and capture of David Mark Hill:

“I was out of town when the shooting occurred, and didn’t get back until later that evening. There was quite an extensive search already underway, with numerous public safety officers, deputies, and SLED agents manning the perimeter of the search area to contain the suspect and more law enforcement personnel split into groups conducting searches. There was a SLED helicopter also, with infrared capabilities. Then Captain Wetherington did coordinate the search for NADPS and did a very nice job. Of course, Captain Mosely and his investigators spearheaded the criminal investigation with SLED. Lt. Pearson also did a great job as media spokesperson, having been rather recently designated by me to fill that role. As I usually do, I let the officers do their jobs, filling in any gaps when necessary and working with the county prosecutor (Barbara Morgan) and regional director of children services on both the investigative and victim support efforts.”

Rather than directly voting for the President and Vice President, in the primaries, U.S. citizens cast votes for Electoral College representatives, known as electors. While electors are theoretically free to vote for the candidate of their choice, in practice they pledge to vote for specific candidates. Thus, voters indirectly vote for Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates by voting for correspondingly pledged electors. Because all of the electors from a state will generally vote for the Presidential candidate that receives the most votes in that state, U.S. Presidential campaigns concentrate on winning the popular vote in a combination of states that choose a majority of the electors, rather than campaigning to win the most votes nationally.
Currently, the Electoral College is composed of 538 electors. Each state has a number of electors equal to the number of its Senators and Representatives in the United States Congress. Additionally, the District of Columbia is given a number of electors equal to the number held by the smallest states. U.S. territories are not represented in the Electoral College. (Wikipedia)
Therein lays the rub. Members of the Electoral College “theoretically” pledge to vote for the President and Vice President the citizens have chosen but there is nothing to stop them from voting the opposite. Unless you have had civics lessons or studied constitutional law, you or me, the average citizen probably believes that when you go to the polls and cast your vote, it counts. Theoretically it does; in reality maybe not. If a government is by definition elected by the people for the people do not the electors have the obligation to vote the way the public votes? We are a two party system which in most years leaves us with slim pickings as far as candidates are concerned. Those in the running are generally those with the most money, influence, family contacts or have access to those aforementioned things. Those in the running are not ordinary citizens like us. Those in the running are wooed by special interest groups and sometimes sell parts of their soul to the devil if-you-will in order to run and hopefully win. Something is wrong when a person spends millions to win a job that pays a paltry sum compared to what they spend. Of course the perks are there; all you have to do is look at the present administration to see that.
I wonder what would happen if an ordinary honest citizen ran for president and won.