Citizens Should Stop Supporting Incumbents
The record-breaking, irresponsible and unaccounted-for spending and bailouts have sobered a good number of people including many of those heretofore enamored of President Barack Obama and his administration. Now, we have a knock-down, drag-out fight over health care, congressmen willing to pass a bill they have not read and a president who feels he must push something through before his majority fades.
The Republicans are happily watching and hoping that the Democrats self-destruct. And I’m sure a lot of folks feel like me: the Republicans would do no better if the roles were reversed. Bipartisanship, so touted by both parties during the campaign, is once again dead on the battlefield of the ever-increasing, fratricidal war being waged between the two parties.
If Congress could come together and wage war on terror with the same will and intensity they now wage on each other, terrorism could be stamped out within a week. It is a shame that our country, so rich in talent and resources, cannot get its government to quit fighting long enough to do what’s best for the country.
Congress has evolved into an inept, lamentable gaggle of career politicians focused entirely on being re-elected, thus they band together into self-destructive parties, bond with any agency or person willing to fund their campaigns and/or line their pockets, and champion any scatter-brained issue that might insure their longevity.
Term limits for congressmen and senators might help. It might attract candidates motivated to do something good for the country rather than for themselves. But how can we persuade the “good ole boys” to vote term limits for themselves? I don’t know, but I know what I’m going to do, and if everyone will join with me, I believe they will get the message. From now on, I will vote a straight non-incumbent ticket.
It’s high time we the people exercise our power and right to limit our congressmen and senators to a single term.
Dick Hollars
Glade Spring, Va.
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Reader Reactions
Let’s be clear: Those who demanded that America divert its troops and treasure from Afghanistan to Iraq in 2002 and 2003 — when there was no Qaeda presence in Iraq bear responsibility for the chaos in Afghanistan that ensued. Now they have the nerve to imperiously and tardily demand that America increase its 68,000-strong presence in Afghanistan to clean up their mess — even though the number of Qaeda insurgents there has dwindled to fewer than 100, according to the president’s national security adviser, Gen. James Jones.
We already have term limits written into the Constitution. House members, having the more powers granted to them must be elected every 2 years. This 2 year hitch is a term limit. The problem is with the electorate, who probably could not tell you one thing their congressman has voted on since he or she was elected. In my opinion, the problem lies with the electorare. Good candidates have ran for office, only to be rejected because they wer “third party”...The two big box parties have disgraced our republic to the point where many refuse to even vote, knowing there will be no change in the direction we are headed, and that is downhill fast!
The origiinal intention of the framers of the Constitution was that everyday people would step up to the plate and serve for 1 to 2 terms in Congress, then return home to live their lives as normal citizens. Instead we have evolved a professional ruling class who will promise anything and do anything to get elected back into their political position, for which they feel entitled. I agree that term limits would help. The argument that is given against term limits is that the job of a representative is so complex these days, what with all of the sophisticated issues they have to deal with, that a representative needs 2 to 3 terms just to learn the job. It must be for this reason (so complicated) that few politicians ever bother to read the entire bills that they vote on. Therefore, the argument against term limits does not stand the test. When they are in session, they vote on bills that oftentimes are needless. Never forget that for every law that is passed the freedoms of the majority are decreased just to control the bad behavior of a few. That is another reason why we see our freedoms eroding.
The system is definitely broken, but will enough people recognize it to workl for true change, while there is still time?
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