We need to establish congressional term limits at the federal level.
The 2016 presidential race is the anti-politician election. People don’t want established career politicians because they consider them corrupt and complacent, which is why Donald Trump is surging on the Republican side.
Freshmen politicians are eager and excited to represent their constituents. They come in with plans to fix the economy, create jobs, combat inequality and address all the other ideas they presented on the campaign trail. However, their initial excitement fades quickly because Washington rewards seniority over ideas.
In 1995, Louisiana created term limits for its legislators. They couldn’t serve more than 12 consecutive years in office. They felt the effects of term limits in 2007 when the first few members reached their 12-year limit.
According to NOLA.com | The Times Picayune, Louisiana enacted term limits to boost both excitement and fresh ideas in Congress, and they wanted to fight against career politicians.
Government positions are not replacements for other careers. Public officials must relate to their constituents, and the only way this can happen is if they have a life outside politics in the private sector. Politicians, please get a life.
Our Founding Fathers made their support for term limits clear in the Articles of Confederation. Article V stated “no person shall be capable of being a delegate for more than three years in any term of six years.”
They didn’t include this clause in the finalized Constitution, but our Founders clearly didn’t consider Congress to be a life-long position. In fact, Congressmen stayed in their home states for most of the year.
Those who argue against term limits say Congress members need experience. This idea sounds great in theory. Legislators who stay in Washington indefinitely can become more knowledgeable on different topics.
However, the federal government gives them the tools they need to make informed decisions quickly. Specifically, they have the Congressional Research Service, which does the research for the politicians when particular topics come up on the floor that are outside their area of expertise. Staying a lifetime in Washington is irrelevant when they can get the information in a matter of minutes.
Term limits wouldn’t change Congress’ ability to govern. Our presidents have term limits, and America has lasted this long. Pres. George Washington set the two-term precedent when he refused a third term. Are our members of Congress saying they’re better than Washington?
Aside from Louisiana, 14 other states have term limits. These states don’t force all members of Congress to leave during every election, so the returning legislators can help the newbies. Freshmen politicians would learn the ropes by their second or third term.
Our government needs term limits in order to focus on serving the people instead of worrying about reelection. Of course, politicians don’t want to pass term limits. They don’t want to limit their power, and passing them is similar to firing yourself from your own job. But the time to limit terms has come, Washington. Bite the bullet and fix this problem for good.
Charlie Bonacquisti is a 20-year-old mass communication sophomore from Dallas, Texas.