Posted on 01/06/2014 7:08:14 AM PST by bigbob
One of the men seeking the GOP nomination for Nebraska’s open Senate seat is proposing moving the capital from Washington to his home state, saying it would be an effective way to cut out the lobbyists and special interests that have turned Capitol Hill into an ATM dispensing taxpayers’ money.
“That’s it, the way to cure the incredible ineffectiveness and dysfunction of both parties in Washington — we move the Capitol to Nebraska,” Ben Sasse, a university president and former Bush administration official, said in 30-second campaign ad that ran in Nebraska over the weekend during the NFL playoff games.
Mr. Sasse said he doesn’t actually believe there are the votes in Congress to move the capital, but said proposing the move is a “thought experiment” designed to pose the question of what the founders would think if they saw the influence-peddling and extent of federal intervention in Americans’ lives.
“I think that they, Nebraska work-a-day folks, think that we’re on the precipice of national decline and they don’t think Washington gets it at all,” Mr. Sasse said in a telephone interview.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...
Thought Experiments are what are driving both foreign and domestic policy right now. Close the friggin' teacher's lounges and put people who have real life experience in charge. JMHO!
absolutely. fantastic idea. in fact, I think congress should be moved every year, and the location should be kept secret until last last possible second. at least the lobbyists would be inconvenienced.
Somewhere close to the Yellowstone caldera.
Well, I guess if DC would no longer be the Capital it would become the 51st state with 2 senators and a representative or two. I wonder which party would benefit more .../duh ...
just go back to our original constitution, articles of confederation and perpetual union, w/o executive, congress, judical (and all the alphabet-soup agencies that go with ‘em!...and bulldoze the whole damn place...and go back to states rights altogether...
Semper Watching!
Dick.G: AMERICAN !
*****
I like the idea of moving the Capitol. The district can stay as it is withthe monuments and blood suckers all located there. We can move the whitehut and its current resident to Nariobi so he can be closer to his roots.
Why do we need a permanent capitol at all?
500+ congresscritters. That’s not even a moderately sized convention center crowd. There are 50 states and 52 weeks in a year. How about we move them to a different convention center every week in a different state with the stipulation that any city hosting within a state can’t do so again for at least 10 years (unless the state doesn’t have enough cities with conference facilities large enough to host 500 peeps).
Imagine how much more we could influence them if we knew for certain the whole gaggle would be in our home state for at least a week every year? And instead of being insulated in DC, they’d have to actually see the country they’re legislating against.
I’d also mandate that, week to week, they had to move to the next geographically close state to reduce travel costs. Maybe start in Maine and work their way South or West until they got to the coast, then hop over to Alaska and then Hawaii.
Move it to Somalia or Iraq.
Not quite. Titor said that the US, after the nuclear war he predicted for early next year, would be split into five different nations, with five different capitals.
Sure, they move the military to new duty stations, why shouldn't congress live by the same? I don't care how they do it-- just all of congress out of DC year-round. It's a nasty, corrupt place...clean it out!
“Well, I guess if DC would no longer be the Capital it would become the 51st state with 2 senators and a representative or two. I wonder which party would benefit more .../duh ...”
No, just break it up and add the pieces to the surrounding states. Either that, or put a wall around it and keeps all the Gibbsmedaats sequestered until they either die off or kill each other.
i believe Washington should move to Lincoln... cut the pay in half, double the representation to force more consensus building, allow states to set the payscale and living quarters, and get the money out of politics... the flights home for nancy pelousy will be halved and make up for all the moving costs... eventually.
t
Why stop at Nebraska. Why not:
1. Move the White House, Congress, and the headquarters of all federal agencies to Barrow, Alaska.
2. Mandate the President remain in Barrow when Congress is in session.
3. Mandate Congress assembles on the first Monday in January and remains in session for not less than 120 days.
4. Mandate that the seat of any member of Congress who leaves Barrow during those 120 days per year except for emergency sessions be declared vacant.
5. Limit federal headquarters staffs to 500 people per agency.
I know some of these suggestions will require Constitutional amendments, but we need a Constitutional Convention to get the country back to basics.
Thank you Mark Levin!
... now that thar's fuhnny! (apologies to LTCG)
That seems like a great reason to blow an enormous amount of money. Thanks bigbob.
Turn DC into a national museum. Close down the house, senate, and white hut. Just about anything that needs to be done can be managed with video conferencing from their home districts.
Why screw up a good, decent state like Nebraska?
I hear they’ve got a lot of cheap real estate available in Detroit - just make it a law that when the capitol gets moved, the congress-critters have to live within the city limits. Might cut down on the number of them, but I suspect we could survive that as well.
Might as well make it official and outsource it to Beijing.
I don’t know he doesn’t seem to understand that where ever the lobbyists will follow. It’s not like DC is that great a place to hang out, lobbyists certainly aren’t there for the weather and culture.
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