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Twitter Felt Strongly About Electoral College Day

by Joseph D. Lyons

Monday, Dec. 19 was the day. All the arguments you've heard about denying Donald Trump the presidency via the Electoral College hinge on the decision of 538 electors. Some 306 of them are from states that voted for Trump, and he needs just 270 to win the presidency. The idea that 37 would peel away to support Clinton or some other candidate is pretty far-fetched (and ultimately didn't happen), but that didn't stop Americans from entertaining the idea. Using the hashtag "Dec 19," Twitter users reacted to Electoral College vote day, and some of their messages are worth reading before Trump is inaugurated in January.

Back in the days that the Framers penned the Constitution, it was understood that the Electoral College could prevent an unfit leader from taking the White House, but nowadays it has become largely ceremonial — except when the popular vote and the Electoral College vote don't match. Essentially the people may choose one person and the electoral system someone else. That's what happened this year. About 2.8 million more people voted for Clinton over Trump, and some of her biggest supporters want to make sure the electors considered that as they headed out to vote on Monday. Using every argument from Russia to Martin Luther King, Jr., they begged the electors to vote faithlessly against Trump. As the nation now knows, those pleas likely weren't successful in thwarting a Trump presidency. The results will be counted officially on Jan. 6 during a joint session of Congress.

1. Makes An Insightful Point

A big part of this revolves around showing that Trump doesn't have a mandate. In fact he has less of one arguably than Clinton herself.

2. Bringing Russia Into The Argument

Those tweeting about the issue see this as no joking matter, and many mention Russia's alleged role in hacking (Putin's spokesman denied it).

3. A Really Serious Comparison

The first day that lived in infamy? Some argue it was Dec. 7, 1941, when Pearl Harbor was attacked in WWII.

4. Not To Freak You Out, But ...

Some even predict the end of the country. But seeing as Trump most likely won the vote and the world is still revolving, an apocalyptic end isn't likely.

5. Russia's Being Mentioned Again

Russia's involvement came up again and again, but both Putin and the Kremlin have firmly denied the hacking allegations.

6. "Winning" Is Relative

Time and again he has walked back on campaign promises. Only time will tell at this point.

7. A Nice, Succinct Message

The best part is that they're quoting Trump himself.

8. Some Electors Surely Considered This

Martin Luther King, Jr., was right about quite a bit and yet not appreciated fully by the mainstream during his life — or even now.

9. They Could Have Been Heroes, Just For One Day

The electoral college did, in fact, elect Trump, though the results won't be final until Congress counts them on Jan. 6. Apparently the hero argument wasn't tempting enough.

10. Not Everyone Agrees On This One

Of course there are some using the hashtag in support of Trump and to attack Obama and the Democrats.

11. The Results Might Be Tough For The Majority

Trump was voted in, though the results won't be finalized until Jan. 6. Needless to say, it will take some time for the official news to sink in.

12. But Here's A Good Argument To Respect Their Choice

Despite state laws that try to control the votes of electors, there's a big push to let them vote based on their conscience. Dave Parker pointed out that if we're going to keep the antiquated system, we should do it as originally planned.

13. Even If He Becomes President, There's Still A Point

Diminishing president-elect Trump can only be a good thing when you see the team he has put together in his Cabinet. The electoral college may have voted him into office, but he's going to have to be careful which policies he promotes if he wants to maintain support.

Despite the fact there reportedly weren't enough faithless electors to throw Trump out of the running, it's good to see such engaged citizens talking about the future of the country. They certainly didn't all get what they had hoped for, but they'll be sure their voice is heard going forward.