When this country was founded, Congress was supposed to be made up of citizen legislators. The Congressional calendar includes so many vacations and recesses because legislators were expected to travel home and keep their businesses and farms running. And politicians back then understood the danger of staying in office too long. The American colonists were ready to crown George Washington a king, but he voluntarily retired from politics after just two terms in office.
There was honor in politics. It was truly service. Men, and later women, were called to serve their communities, make life better for their constituents, and then retire to let someone else bring fresh ideas to the table.
It is disgusting how far Congress has fallen. The "service" model is dead. Congressmen and Senators are now "serving" for two, three, and even four decades.
These people don't cling to power for decades to serve their constituents. They do it to serve themselves.
Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) has a simple solution: Congressional term limits.
Cruz's bill -- Senate Judicial Resolution 1 -- would limit Senators to serving two terms (12 years) and Congressmen to three terms (6 years). Congressmen could run for Senate seats, meaning that the maximum any man or woman could serve in Congress would be 18 years.
Congressional leadership in both parties, however, are refusing to hold a vote on Cruz's bill. Both McConnell and Pelosi want to kill this bill because it literally threatens their power!
Nancy Pelosi has "served" since 1987 (32 years). Chuck Schumer was elected to the House of Representatives in 1981 and then became a Senator in 1999 (over 38 combined years in Congress). Mitch McConnell has been a Senator since 1985 (34 years). Even House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy -- who is doing a much better -- has been in office for over 12 years.
Term limits shouldn't be necessary. In a perfect world, elections would be enough to force these career politicians from office. If someone stopped working on behalf of their constituents, they would be voted out.
Nancy Pelosi's district is in a crisis. Rampant homelessness has led to widespread public defecation and drug use. It is impossible to walk the streets without encountering human feces or used hypodermic needles. Housing prices are out of control and her constituents' quality of life is actually declining. She still won re-election last year with over 86 percent of the vote.
Ted Cruz's bill would completely replace the House of Representatives in 4-6 years. Almost half of the United States Senate would end up being replaced within a decade years. This is a chance to literally start over.
82 percent of Americans want Congressional term limits. We can disagree over what that should look like. Some proposals would cut Congressional pay and benefits after a certain number of years. Others would change how long Congressmen and Senators should be allowed to serve
But the point is that the Congressional leadership of BOTH parties is refusing to let us have that debate. They are blocking all term limit bills - introduced by Republicans and Democrats - from even getting committee hearings. Pelosi, McConnell, and Schumer know that if this bill passes, they will lose their power. Corporate donors and lobbyists have "invested" billions in members of Congress over the years and are pressuring the Leadership to protect their "investments."
We must bust through the establishment's blockade!
Does anyone seriously think that Congressmen and Senators are bringing new ideas to the table after "serving" decades in Congress?
We finally have a chance to put an end to career politicians in this country. We can finally drain the swamp.
For years, we have talked about 'taking this country back.' That means taking the fight to politicians in both parties.
Ted Cruz met with President Trump and got him on board with this plan. But it is up to YOU to force the vote!
Don't let this opportunity pass us by!
Fight for the Republic,
Joe Otto
Conservative Daily
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