The electoral college

[BzaDem]

24. They likely couldn't vote for Pence. They must pick from the top 3 EV vote-getters.

So the only way they could vote for Pence is if some electors didn't just abstain, but in fact voted for Pence.

But in that case, even if the House did elect Pence as the third-top vote getter, that would mean that the Senate could not elect Pence as Vice President. And the Senate must pick from the top two EV vote getters for VP. That would require them to pick Kaine, which would effectively cost them a seat in the Senate.

But I think all of this is beside the point. I don't think any of us would ultimately be happy about living in a country where the winner of the election was the loser for the Presidency. This would not be a one-off. There are no one-offs. It would be a precedent that would have effects that continue for the future of our republic.

Even if you look at it from purely a "protecting the country" perspective, it would be a disaster from that perspective for the EC to vote against Trump. What would be easier for a foreign government to manipulate or blackmail in the future? 130 million people? Or 538 electors?

Our citizenry is the ultimate check and balance. Even if it is not perfect -- even if it completely messes up sometimes -- it is far more likely repel such influence than a system where 538 random people pick our president.