Safeguard: An Electoral College Story

Yet another doc that would have been great if it weren't for the loud techno violins that play constantly throughout. When will doc directors stop this madness? I want to hear your story, not screaming loud background music that NEVER ENDS. What a shame.

This film claims to be a non-partisan look at the electoral college system and its history. About 30 seconds in to Safeguard, its obvious political leanings were extremely evident. I was looking for some historical perspectives on the system as well as pros and cons of said system but found what felt to be a propagandist look blindly defending a system that has essentially made my vote irrelevant in every presidential election I've taken part in

There was a lot of historical foundation to this documentary and a good explanation as to how the Electoral College is supposed to work. That's what I was looking for, and that's what I got. I was previously registered as a Democrat and now I register as Independent. I can say that even though this was influenced by the Heritage Foundation, it would be nitpicking to say they pooped on all the Democratic side of things. They clearly showed Obama's wins and positive message, and Howard Dean's influences on the all state party movement and not his weird yell. If anything, this should motivate people to not only vote but get their out of state friends to vote.

An interesting history of the electoral college. It was billed as a non-partisan documentary, however, I started to question its slant after showing highly flattering footage of republicans and awkward unflattering footage of democrats. The discussion on whether or not to abolish the electoral college was one-sided in favor of keeping it in place. The arguments for eliminating it were not even presented explicitly, but only mentioned negatively in talking points for keeping it. It also never delved into the question of updating the number of electors each state gets based on current populations. It didn't even present it as a potential option. After questioning its impartiality, I came here to find it was apparently funded by a right wing group. In the future, they may not want to be obvious in their propaganda.

Imagine you just got a job at Walmart. This would be the movie you would watch on your first day on the job, starring Sam Walmart himself, welcoming you to the Walmart Family.

I am disapointed, but not surprised by the poor reviews of this documentary by neophytes that still believe America was founded on flawed beliefs and systems that are outdated and unfair. The movie lays out clearly the intellectual compromise that created the "United States" and why the Electoral College is still relevant and necessary. Of course if you dont give a damn about your state's vote, or more likely dont care about the concerns of the electorate in Wyoming or Nebraska, then throw it away and allow LA, Chicago, Houston and NYC, choose presidents. The picture makes the arguments on both sides but clearly shows the popular vote option is the least "fair" and most divisive.

After listening to a decidedly undiverse cast of speakers unanimously praise the electoral college while espousing some factual inaccuracies, I decided to do a little research. The film is produced by Save Our States and the "cast" is comprised entirely of Republicans with ties to other neo conservative think tanks, organizations, and the Reagan and Bush administrations. Many of these organizations, and by association the people within them, desperately want to maintain the electoral college for its continuing ability to give rural states, formerly slave states, disproportionate representation in Congress. By doing so they can continue the glorious battle to make America white, er uh, great, again.