Use the presidential candidates to pressure Congress for Term Limits

tenurecorrupts.com ^ | 070808 | Nelson Lee Walker

[nels96]

Presidents are term limited, so they can only do so much damage to the country. What I am very concerned about is our crummy Congress, which gets worse every year, and needs to be term limited. But Congress has a LOCK on never letting us get term limits on them.

So I suggest the only way to do it, is to NEVER REELECT any incumbent! In the meantime, we can try to use the presidential race to give us a boost. Such as the following:

McCain is a maverick. He likes to make waves. And he specializes in townhall meetings.

So he is the ideal guy to focus on for this term limits idea. Suppose we try to get just one person in each of his upcoming townhall meetings to ask the following question:

Senator McCain,

A characteristic that you have been both admired and derided for is. . .being a maverick.

That very quality, I believe, holds the key to your winning your run for the presidency.

A substantial majority in this country believes that Congress should be term limited.

If elected, will you use your bully pulpit for a Congressional Term Limits amendment?

If he gets this question in a few meetings around the country, he may, as a maverick wanting to become president, take it as a significant way to boost his chances of success.

I am sending out the particulars of his upcoming meetings so that those of you who live near those meetings can attend, and ask the question, (or your own similar question).

The next meeting for McCain is at Portsmouth OH on July 9, details at :

http://www.johnmccain.com/Informing/Calendar/Detail.aspx?guid=146ebbb6-e9c5-44d1-80a7-2ae79b7112b6

The one after that is at Albuquerque, NM on July 15, details at :

http://www.johnmccain.com/Informing/Calendar/Detail.aspx?guid=6763ebf8-ad4a-4098-b211-fb995b0cbdf5

I trust there are some term limits believers in Portsmouth and Albuquerque who will do it!

I have not been able to find a town hall schedule for Obama. Let me know if you do, and I will publish it.

If either candidate supports Term Limits, he will sharply improve his chances for the presidency.

Thanks, Nelson Lee Walker of tenurecorrupts.com

[nels96]

Presidents are term limited, so they can only do so much damage to the country. What I am very concerned about is our crummy Congress, which gets worse every year, and needs to be term limited. But Congress has a LOCK on never letting us get term limits on them.

So I suggest the only way to do it, is to NEVER REELECT any incumbent! In the meantime, we can try to use the presidential race to give us a boost. Such as the following:

McCain is a maverick. He likes to make waves. And he specializes in townhall meetings.

So he is the ideal guy to focus on for this term limits idea. Suppose we try to get just one person in each of his upcoming townhall meetings to ask the following question:

Senator McCain,

A characteristic that you have been both admired and derided for is. . .being a maverick.

That very quality, I believe, holds the key to your winning your run for the presidency.

A substantial majority in this country believes that Congress should be term limited.

If elected, will you use your bully pulpit for a Congressional Term Limits amendment?

If he gets this question in a few meetings around the country, he may, as a maverick wanting to become president, take it as a significant way to boost his chances of success.

I am sending out the particulars of his upcoming meetings so that those of you who live near those meetings can attend, and ask the question, (or your own similar question).

The next meeting for McCain is at Portsmouth OH on July 9, details at :

http://www.johnmccain.com/Informing/Calendar/Detail.aspx?guid=146ebbb6-e9c5-44d1-80a7-2ae79b7112b6

The one after that is at Albuquerque, NM on July 15, details at :

http://www.johnmccain.com/Informing/Calendar/Detail.aspx?guid=6763ebf8-ad4a-4098-b211-fb995b0cbdf5

I trust there are some term limits believers in Portsmouth and Albuquerque who will do it!

I have not been able to find a town hall schedule for Obama. Let me know if you do, and I will publish it.

If either candidate supports Term Limits, he will sharply improve his chances for the presidency.

Thanks, Nelson Lee Walker of tenurecorrupts.com

[djsherin]

I’m curious to know people’s thoughts about term limits for Congressmen. I’ve never really thought about it.

[LukeL]

It is odd that the only people who can propose term limits are the ones who would be hurt by them.

There are very good career politicians who do a lot for their district (Sensenbrenner) but also a lot who do nothing but take up space. A simple grandfather clause might make this easier to pass.

[homeguard]

IMHO term limits must be made law. It is the only way to keep these bastards (ie Kennedy/Murtha) from destroying our beloved country. The corrupt and treasonous behavior of our elected representatives has left us no other option. We are being eaten alive from within.

[GulfBreeze]

I don’t like term limits. I don’t like them on the president or anywhere. I think the term limits ought to be when people have the gumption to vote the bums out.

[DManA]

You must be pretty young. Became a real issue in the lage 80s/90’s with a batch of freshmen Republicans who claimed they wanted to push it. All caught Potomac Fever and forgot their pledges.

[rzn_republicans]

Our system of government was never intended to create career politicians, the intent was to elect farmers, business people, people that actually had other means of support and careers into government. What has happened with career politicians is evident and although voting should in of itself create term limits it does not, because generally speaking the voting public is to ignorant, they tend to vote name recognition. In a sense we have created a group of elected officials who are somewhat aristocratic. It is evident that not the ‘best’ people are being elected to any branch of government, suffice to say that in these times the ‘best’ people won't even run for office.

[Tzimisce]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Yeah right. I’m sure the aristocrats who make up our Congress will get right to work on that. :)

[kingu]

The only way to get term limits for congressmen is a constitutional amendment that limits their time in congress. Since that’d have to pass the House and the Senate before going to the state capitals, it’s never happening.

Pressure your local party offices to run competitive campaigns every primary. Not only will this increase the level of attention paid by the congressman to the district (actually even meeting with constituents on a regular basis so they might vote each election), but it’ll also increase the pool of viable candidates for other state offices.

It’s a win win, for the most cost effective means.

[villagerjoel]

Term limits are not the answer. The reason they get six years, is that they were originally intended to be directly responsible to the governor of their state, which would be true to a Republican form of government.

[BillyBoy]

I support term limits and age limits for all three branches of government.

For Congress, House members should be limited to four 2-year terms (8 years max), and Senate members limited to two six year terms (12 years max), with a possible extention of ONE additional term for members in leadership positions (Speaker, Whip, etc.) in order to have someone experienced in those positions. Members of the house must be at least 25 but no older than 75. Members of the Senate must be at least 30 but no older than 80.

Members of the U.S. Supreme Court should be limited to three 10-year terms (30 years) or until age 75, whichever comes first. Voters should have the option to dump them every 10 years.

I throughly disagree that we the idea that we can "term limit them ourselves" at the ballot box. Most members of Congress are in "safe" gerrymandered districts designed to elect them for life, regardless of how poor a job they do. That's how Barney Frank can get caught running a male prostitution ring in his house and still manage to get re-elected easily.

[fieldmarshaldj]

All of which would require Constitutional amendments, and which will never pass. Limiting Congressional terms would end up a situation where staffers would be running both bodies (especially if those were lifetime limits — otherwise members would just rotate back and forth between both bodies, what they’re already doing in some state legislatures).

[Impy]

The bad ones should be limited to ZERO terms.

[kellynla]

“I think the term limits ought to be when people have the gumption to vote the bums out”

And I think we all agree.
The problem is that the districts are so gerrymandered that it has become practically impossible to vote incumbents out of office.

Congressional term limits is the only answer but as others have pointed out; it will be practically impossible to pass into law. There are good signs though. The NV state Supreme court has just upheld local & state 12 year term limits.

[GulfBreeze]

I don't agree. Gerrymandering can weight it in favor of one party or the other but incumbents can still be beaten in the primary.

I think we ought to have laws preventing the gerrymandering. I don't like a law that says I cannot exercise my right to vote for any qualified candidate of my choice.