Change the Voting Age?

For John, BLUF:  We won't let an 18 year old buy a gun, but we let them vote.  Weird.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Ramaswamy proposes raising voting age to 25, unless people serve in military or pass a test

From ABC News, by Reporter Meg Kinnard, 9:04 PM EDT, 11 May 2023.

Here is the lede plus two:

Republican presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy on Thursday voiced support for changing the overall U.S. voting age to 25, unless younger Americans fulfill at least six months of service in the military or as a first responder — or pass the same citizenship test administered to those seeking to become naturalized citizens.

Ramaswamy’s campaign announced the biotech entrepreneur and “anti-woke” activist’s push for a U.S. Constitutional amendment promoting “civic duty voting,” which he announced in a news release and detailed during a campaign event in Urbandale, Iowa.

Revising the Constitution is no simple task, requiring overwhelming support in Congress and in state legislatures.  Still, Ramaswamy said in his release that the “absence of national pride is a serious threat to the future of our country” and argued his proposal “can create a sense of shared purpose and responsibility amongst young Americans to become educated citizens.”

Law Professor Glenn Harlan Reynolds chimed in, noting he had proposed something similiar in USA Today.

I agree with Candidate Vivek Ramaswamy and Professor Reynolds.  Observing college canpus life from afar, I am not impressed with the capacity of college students to engage in spirited, yet civil, discussion.  Throw in AntiFa, to furthur erode civil discourse.  And what about those who never went to college.  How many of them are registered to vote and understand the issues?

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff