Posted on 08/21/2007 5:34:13 AM PDT by BigAlPro
The U.S. Congress is doing a real crappy job of serving the citizens of this country.
According to Real Clear Politics, the latest poll average puts the job approval rating of Congress at just 24.7 percent. Americans are obviously not happy with the current performance of our so-called leaders in Washington, D.C.
Among other things, the left is upset with the Democrats for failing to end the war in Iraq. Liberals actually believed last year's campaign promises and have been once again duped by those who simply tell them what they want to hear in order to get elected or re-elected.
Meanwhile, the right is still ticked off about the repeated attempts to grant citizenship to illegal aliens. Not only did a number of Republican senators spit in the face of their base, but the president himself went out of his way to belittle and berate the most loyal of his supporters.
Let's not forget about the independents. Those in the middle would give just about anything to see something positive get done on Capitol Hill for a change. Their No. 1 question has got to be, "Whatever happened to common sense?"
It is obvious that our senators and representatives have forgotten just who they work for and what their job is. Maybe they all need to go on a leaders' retreat to re-evaluate their pitiful existence and re-educate themselves about the U.S. Constitution. They all seem to know what the document is, but they are obviously not living up to what it says.
The biggest problem I see today with our Capitol Hill cronies is power. There are those who have it, those who think they have it, those who want it and those who will do anything to get it. Having and wielding power has become more important than doing what is right for the sake of this nation.
I must have missed the paragraph in the U.S. Constitution that places an emphasis on attaining power while in office. Silly me, I thought these leaders were in Washington to serve their constituency. Somewhere in my twisted past I learned that our government was supposed to be of the people, by the people and for the people.
One of the fixable keys to attaining power is longevity. The longer we leave elected officials in office, the more they strive for and typically acquire power.
If you had to name the five most powerful people on Capitol Hill, would they not be those with the most tenure? How much better would your life be if those five individuals were no longer eligible to serve in the U.S. Congress?
The ultimate solution to the power problem is term limits. The absence of term limits has created a false sense of invincibility and immortality in too many of our legislators. If we would simply restrict our elected officials to 20 years on the Hill, we would not have to deal with the insanity that seems to settle in on our career politicians.
Once the term limits are in place and the toilet of corruption has been flushed, the American Congress can get down to business and get back to work for the American people. Then and only then will the congressional approval ratings get back above 50 percent. Then and only then will our national legislature be truly effective.
Then and only then will Congress be what it was originally intended to be.
AMEN! How do we get term limits passed? I think it is critical to our future. What is the process?
Or have the crooks set it up so they have to vote on it themselves? If so, we are doomed. There must be a loophole - what can a citizen do to start this?
I heard Carl Levin, D-MI compalining that the leadership of the government of Iraq should be changed because it has proven to be so ineffective.
Talk about the pot calling the kettle black!
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
I'm thinking 6 years is plenty long enough to be a "public servant". Let more people take a turn at it. They get in & know they only have so long to make a difference & then they get back out into real life. Our government today is living proof of what you get with "lifers".
Congress would have to amend the constitution. Those power hungry aristocrats would have to "want" to vote themselves out of office after a time. And forget 20 years...10 years at most.
no, it can be done on the local and state level...get a petition drive going for your state, and cut the politicans right out of the decision
At the risk of repeating myself, it was not because Republicans were to conservative that caused the massacre in ‘08. It was because GOP Congressmen and Senators acted much more like Democrats than Republicans. Why they did so is open to debate, while sending them back was not.
I'm going to look into this for my state, Kentucky. We need to get this going NOW.
One of the ironies that most congressmen have higher approval individually. People like their congressman more than “congress.”
Demand a border fence! Build it NOW!! Beef up the border patrol and close our borders! Stop the DREAM Act!!
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Take a look at their hidden agenda: http://www.mexica-movement.org
I wish they would set a benchmark to impeach themselves by the end of the month.
For Congress to be what the founders intended, we would have to dismantle 90% of the Federal bureaucracy. I doubt the author has really thought this through.
You have succinctly, colloquially, and perhaps inadvertently explained why Mr. Hunter never had a chance at the WH in spite of his most respected status.
“...what can a citizen do to start this?”
We already have term limits.....just don’t vote for any incumbent!!!
Unfortunately I don’t think there will ever be term limits at the federal level since it takes a two thirds majority of both houses of Congress to send an amendment to the states. They will never get that large of a vote. Gingrich and company at least brought this up for a vote in 1995 but it failed. Even if every Republican in the House had voted in favor it would have fallen far short of the 2/3 number.
When was the last time you heard a Congressman ask whether something they were contemplating was a Constitutionally authorized power of Congress?
When was the last time someone stood up and said “this is not authorized under the 17 powers that the sovereign states ALLOWED the federal government to have”?
Listen to the Dems repeat their fight, fight, fight mantra. If you want the bickering to end, elect problem solvers instead of fighters.
My local and state reps are not as "out-of-control" as this nation's national senators and reps. Are you suggesting that each state could impose term limits on it's own national representation? Interesting thought. I don't know about the logistics or legalities of it. However, those constituents with the most influential representation, i.e. - MA, CA, NV, etc. would never go start the tide and the "also rans" would want more seniority representation. I don't think it would work at the state level if that is what you meant for national representation.
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