I’m beginning to believe that good old Ben Franklin was on to something when he wrote ”Guests, like fish, begin to stink after three days.” That said, do you ever wonder if our elected officials overstay their welcome? Is there a political tipping point, a time when it’s simply time to go?
I don’t know about you, but I never thought of ”The Hill” as a retirement community.
According to Section 1, “No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice…” Why not make the 22nd Amendment to our Constitution applicable to the President and members of Congress? Why not take all the passion and energy surrounding the health care debate and use it for common good? What say we move for a true “reform plan” that begins with term limits for Congress?
The current group of “Hill Huggers” isn’t going anywhere without a fight. True. But perhaps we can start chipping away at the entrenched entitlement of career politicians one ballot at a time. No more vote manipulation, no more monopoly of power through gerrymandering. When we vote next time, lets give them a two-term-ticket.
Now for those of you suggesting that a regulated retirement for lifelong legislatures is a bad idea, I would turn your attention to the health care signing ceremony at the White House yesterday. After all the pomp, photo ops and pulpit pounding it was time for President Obama to put the pen to paper making it the law. Oh, but wait a minute. The President didn’t put a pen to the paper, he put 22 pens to paper, marking tiny fractions of his signature, slowly, methodically until he finished. Just to write the letter B for Barak took like 2 pens. Are you kidding me? Second graders are able to sign their names faster. After the press left did they turn out the lights and put their heads on the desk for quite time? Did they wake in time for afternoon snacks of juice and crackers?
Stop for just a second and think about the insanity. 22 pens? I don’t know about you, but when we make the most powerful man in the world sign his name like he was learning cursive penmanship for the very first time, just so a few career politicians get a souvenir pen, it’s time for a mental health checkup. 22 pens? And these are the people we repeatedly put in office?
Some of these folks have been in office way too long!
One Comment
A Congress of career politicians will NEVER allow us to constitutionally term limit them by an amendment. But… WE CAN IMPOSE term limits on them in Congressional elections (‘2010, 2012, 2014……):
1. Never reelect your Congressman or Senator.
2. Always vote, but only for the strongest challenger , regardless of party .
If Congress has not passed a term limits bill by 2014, repeat this in 2016, 2018….
Our only intelligent choice is to NEVER REELECT anyone in Congress!
The only infallible, unstoppable, guaranteed way to get a truly new Congress, AND a new politics, is NEVER REELECT ANY INCUMBENT! DO IT EVERY ELECTION until term limits is ratified. In other words, don’t let anyone serve more than one term until Congress passes a term limits bill!
NEVER REELECT ANYONE IN CONGRESS. DO IT EVERY ELECTION! … until we ratify term limits.
Nelson Lee Walker of tenurecorrupts.com
4 Trackbacks
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Mercypolitics, brianbrawdy. brianbrawdy said: R U KIDDING ME? 22 pens to sign 1 bill into law. New definition of insanity. http://ping.fm/JOmfr #tcot #digg #politics [...]
[...] « The Mental Health of Career Politicians [...]
[...] there a time limit that attaches to the admonition against speaking ill of the dead? I know Ben Franklin said that after 3 days house guests began to overstay their welcome, though I’m not sure if [...]
[...] of holding public office…Period. We treat them like rock stars and they hang out on stage for as long as is humanly possible, waiting for one last encore. The Capitol Hill Huggers, I like to call [...]