[Home]  [Headlines]  [Latest Articles]  [Latest Comments]  [Post]  [Sign-in]  [Mail]  [Setup]  [Help] 

Status: Not Logged In; Sign In

You Know What Happens Next

Cash Jordan: Half-Built Tower Abandoned… as ICE Deports Entire ‘Migrant Workforce’

Heavy rainfall causes flash flooding Tuesday night, some cars stuck in high water on Chicago's West

Biden Doctor PLEADS THE FIFTH, Refuses To Testify To Congress, Biden Pardons ARE VOID

Joe Rogan says FBI director Kash Patel played him for a fool and maga for fools with the Jeff Epstein files

Elon's AI System "Grok" Went Rogue And Has Been SHUT DOWN in an Emergency!

Earthquake Swarms at One of the MOST DANGEROUS Volcanoes in the USA

Ben Shapiro Declares Epstein Case CLOSED: ‘Facts on the Ground Have Changed’

Iran receives 40 Chinese J10-C Fighter Jets

China’s Railgun Is Now Battle-Ready, Thanks to Nuclear Power

Chinese Hypersonic Advancements! Deadly new missile could decimate entire US fleet in 20 minutes

Iran Confirms Massive Chinese HQ 9 B Missile Deal

Why Is Europe Hitting 114°F And Still Rising?

The INCREDIBLE Impacts of Methylene Blue

The LARGEST Eruptions since the Merapi Disaster in 2010 at Lewotobi Laki Laki in Indonesia

Feds ARREST 11 Leftists For AMBUSH On ICE, 2 Cops Shot, Organized Terror Cell Targeted ICE In Texas

What is quantum computing?

12 Important Questions We Should Be Asking About The Cover Up The Truth About Jeffrey Epstein

TSA quietly scraps security check that every passenger dreads

Iran Receives Emergency Airlift of Chinese Air Defence Systems as Israel Considers New Attacks

Russia reportedly used its new, inexpensive Chernika kamikaze drone in the Ukraine

Iran's President Says the US Pledged Israel Wouldn't Attack During Previous Nuclear Negotiations

Will Japan's Rice Price Shock Lead To Government Collapse And Spark A Global Bond Crisis

Beware The 'Omniwar': Catherine Austin Fitts Fears 'Weaponization Of Everything'

Roger Stone: AG Pam Bondi Must Answer For 14 Terabytes Claim Of Child Torture Videos!

'Hit Us, Please' - America's Left Issues A 'Broken Arrow' Signal To Europe

Cash Jordan Trump Deports ‘Thousands of Migrants’ to Africa… on Purpose

Gunman Ambushes Border Patrol Agents In Texas Amid Anti-ICE Rhetoric From Democrats

Texas Flood

Why America Built A Forest From Canada To Texas


(s)Elections
See other (s)Elections Articles

Title: Time for Term Limits Again
Source: [None]
URL Source: http://www.commonwealthfoundation.o ... ail/time-for-term-limits-again
Published: Feb 18, 2010
Author: .
Post Date: 2010-02-18 20:27:40 by christine
Keywords: None
Views: 133
Comments: 7

At its genesis 2,500 years ago, democracy incorporated term limits as a safeguard against corruption and complacency.

Aristotle believed that frequent rotation in office would foster civic involvement and constrain a politician's ability to acquire power. Members of the Athenian governing council were chosen by lottery and eligible only upon agreeing to serve no more than two years.

Several of America's founding fathers, including Franklin, Adams, and Jefferson, championed term limits. Term limits were included in the Articles of Confederation, the Virginia Plan for the U.S. Constitution, and the Pennsylvania Constitution of 1776.

The framers of our federal Constitution omitted term limits only because they believed self-imposed term limits would be a tradition. For a while, they were. In the 36 years following ratification of the Constitution, the average length of service for Senators was slightly less than five years. During the 19th century, the average Congressman served only 4.5 years. Henry Clay was elected Speaker of the House during his first term.

Unfortunately, this spirit of civic virtue yielded to self-aggrandizement. Early on, legislators served a few terms in a public office and then returned to private life to live under the laws they created. Today, politicians make a career out of getting re-elected to the same office.

Opponents of term limits argue that Americans are well-served by professional politicians. Term limits, they say, would result in the country being governed by neophytes. Some argue that "America's challenges today are far more complex than those of yesteryear and demand experienced policymakers." Yet we replace the president (and most governors) every four to eight years, and no significant portion of the citizenry is clamoring for a repeal of term limits on the executive branch.

In Pennsylvania, our highly "professionalized" General Assembly-which is among the highest compensated and has the most staff in the nation-has missed the state budget deadline seven consecutive years. It has achieved for the Commonwealth mediocrity, or worse, in public education and economic growth-among other categories.

The University of California Irvine's Mark Petracca once punctuated the matter saying: "There is no empirical evidence that professional politicians do a better job of governing than amateurs at any level of government."

Opponents frequently offer two other arguments, neither of which is valid:

"We already have term limits, they're called elections." This cliché ignores that we do not have competitive elections, which is why incumbents in Congress and many state legislatures get re-elected over 90 percent of the time.

Incumbents have erected strong barriers for challengers to overcome, such as the gerrymandering of political boundary lines and fundraising restrictions that make it extremely difficult for challengers to raise money. Incumbents lavish upon themselves a number of electoral advantages, such as mailing promotional newsletters, calendars, maps and other items to their constituents, courtesy of the taxpayers.

"Term limits restrict the voters' choice and are undemocratic." As the Wall Street Journal's John Fund wrote in Cleaning House, "If a majority of people supports term limits, as a condition of employment for their elected officials, then term limits are democracy in action. They will merely be adding to existing restrictions such as age and length of residency."

Very few issues resonate with Americans more than term limits, with research showing that two-thirds of the people believe term limits are a good idea.

Corruption in Harrisburg is rampant while state policymakers ignore pressing problems, including a looming seven-fold increase in public pension payments, ever-growing Medicaid and prison costs, and the need for accountability and transparency in state spending.

Now more than at any time in recent memory, the people are pleading with Harrisburg and Washington for a restoration of the principles upon which Pennsylvania and America were built. That career politicians remain tone-deaf spells the need to bring back term limits.

Post Comment   Private Reply   Ignore Thread  


TopPage UpFull ThreadPage DownBottom/Latest

Begin Trace Mode for Comment # 6.

#3. To: christine (#0)

We need age limits too. 62 & you're out. Go be a Wal-Mart greeter.

Esso  posted on  2010-02-18   20:36:55 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  


#5. To: Esso (#3)

The Founding Fathers were naive in thinking that only good men would want to serve their country. Were they ever naive.

Cynicom  posted on  2010-02-18   20:54:45 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  


#6. To: Cynicom (#5)

They were seeing things from their point-of-view at one point in time. It's very easy to slip into two-dimensional thinking under those conditions, but yeah, they screwed the pooch, and somewhere along the line, we dropped the ball.

Esso  posted on  2010-02-18   21:06:27 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  


Replies to Comment # 6.

#7. To: Esso (#6)

The South rewrote the Constitution, one big change, the Prresident served one six year term and out he went. No running for second term the first day of the first term.

We lost the Civil War. Maybe next time, I hope.

Cynicom  posted on  2010-02-18 21:08:22 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  


End Trace Mode for Comment # 6.

TopPage UpFull ThreadPage DownBottom/Latest


[Home]  [Headlines]  [Latest Articles]  [Latest Comments]  [Post]  [Sign-in]  [Mail]  [Setup]  [Help]