I.Introduction No country in the world has a direct democracy.Direct democracy is practically impossible in a nation of the size and complexity of the United States.Americans are governed through representatives.There is simply no alternative.There has been a long debate about the proper relationship between a people and its representatives.One view holds that the representative must follow the expressed opinion of the constituency. Another view,first elaborated two centuries ago by the English theorist Edmund Burke,holds that the representative is obliged to exercise personal judgement in making policy decision.The debate is essentially an issue of which interests will be the objects of public policy.I. Introduction No country in the world has a direct democracy. Direct democracy is practically impossible in a nation of the size and complexity of the United States. Americans are governed through representatives. There is simply no alternative. There has been a long debate about the proper relationship between a people and its representatives. One view holds that the representative must follow the expressed opinion of the constituency. Another view, first elaborated two centuries ago by the English theorist Edmund Burke, holds that the representative is obliged to exercise personal judgement in making policy decision. The debate is essentially an issue of which interests will be the objects of public policy