The 17th Amendment established the direct election of United States Senators.
Said by Tucker Carlson, Checked Updated
- Sources
- 6 support
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 90%
The Joe Rogan ExperienceNov 6, 2026
Multiple primary sources (National Archives, Senate.gov, Brookings, Chronicling America) confirm the 17th Amendment provided for direct election of U.S. senators by the people, replacing election by state legislatures. The extracted claim matches the passage's assertion that the amendment 'did direct election'; the passage's surrounding opinions about it being a disaster are not part of the claim.
What was said
… They were appointed by state legislators. So you voted for your state legislator, and then they would appoint a senator. So there wasn't there was actually a little bit of a buffer, and you you know, you had to rely on your state legislator. Uhm, during the populist era, the 17th Amendment passed, which did direct election. I think that's a disaster. I think we should go back, because a senator's 90% of their time is not being spent with voters; it's being spent on this. And I think it's a little bit of a game where everyone in D.C. …
The Joe Rogan Experience · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Supports. The 17th Amendment, ratified April 8, 1913, replaced election of senators by state legislatures with election by the people, as its text states 'elected by the people thereof.'[1][2][6]
Supports. The Senate.gov and Chronicling America sources state the amendment established direct election of senators by popular vote, which is the core of the claim.[3][4]
Supports. Brookings describes the 17th Amendment as ushering in direct elections of U.S. senators, replacing the Framers' indirect election by state legislators.[5]
Sources
6 sources: 1 fact-checker, 4 primary, 1 not rated
- 1David Dewhurst went from ‘You betcha, Kemosabe’ to ‘I would not be in favor of’ repealpolitifact.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 217th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Direct Election of ...archives.gov · primary source · cited for: supports
- 3Landmark Legislation: Seventeenth Amendmentsenate.gov · primary source · cited for: supports
- 417th Amendment: Topics in Chronicling Americaguides.loc.gov · primary source · cited for: supports
- 5The 100th Anniversary of the 17th Amendmentbrookings.edu · primary source · cited for: supports
- 6Happy birthday, 17th Amendment!constitutioncenter.org · not rated · cited for: supports
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Checked 2 times
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