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baldeagle wrote:Why should we have term limits? Ted Kennedy. Robert Byrd. Richard Durbin. John Kerry. Diane Feinstein. Barbara Boxer. Richard Schumer. Barney Frank. Nancy Pelosi. Sheila Jackson Lee.

It's the citizens' way of saying to the bozos in liberal states, try again. That one was a bust. Allowing politicians to server forever doesn't make them better legislators. It makes them more accomplished crooks. By limiting their terms you tell them they will have to live under the laws they pass and they will not suck off the government teat for the remainder of their lives. That should make even the most cynical of them think twice about the laws they support.

I think you mean Chuck Schumer.

Calvin Coolidge had the answer to the problem. "Don't vote for Democrats" he advised.

baldeagle wrote:We used to have term limits for Senators. Then they passed the 17th Amendment and destroyed the system of checks and balances. Representatives are as close as we come to democratic elections. They represent the voice of the people. Senators were supposed to represent the voice of the State. They were appointed by the Governor or Legislature and represented the party that was in power at the time. When the Governor or Legislature changed, the Senator might change too. Furthermore, Senators were not beholden to the people to represent their views. Now both houses are about the next election.

Repeal the 17th Amendment. Then let's see what impact that has before we make any further changes.

I find the notion of being afraid of term limits rather quaint. It's like saying, I love this guy that represents me now and there's not another person in my state who could do as well as he does. Really? How do you know if you don't try? Maybe fresh blood will bring the change we need. New ones wouldn't be quite so influenced by the "old" ones if the old ones were leaving soon.

What was the term limit for Senators? I know that original Senators were appointed by the Legislature, but never heard of any term limits. BTW, Sam Houston was a Senator from 1845 until 1859, pre-17th Amendment.

The only real difference it made was that now instead of bribing the Legislators for support, the candidate had to bribe the people, cater to them.

The idea of term limits has all sorts of enticing possibilities but it has been a dismal disaster in California. Before, you had legislators who hung around long enough to learn how things worked. The entrenched bureaucracy had to obey them, for better or worse because they were going to be there, likely. Since term limits, the legislators are only going to serve a couple of terms then must move up or out or somewhere else. The bureaucrats just bide their time, dealing with rookies mostly. The Speaker of the CA House last term was first elected in 2008, made Speaker in 2010. That's absurd. Of course, absurdity is not disqualifying here.

I suggest you think long and hard about term limits. It doesn't work the way you think, or hope, it does in practice.