Ro Khanna's pitch for congressional term limits prompted this reprise. Please read and reconsider, Rep. Khanna.
“Term limits are always popular until they find out, you know,
who’s not term-limited: lobbyists. And guess who's in charge in every
state legislature that has term limits in this country--the
un-term-limited lobbyists are . . . term limits--I bought into it until I
saw that happen.”
--Chuck Todd, 10/21/2016
"How Term Limits Turn Legislatures Over to Lobbyists
"The
next time you hear some TV pundit proclaiming the 'solution' to the
'problem' of Mitch McConnell or Dianne Feinstein being in office too
long, consider their real agenda..." [more]
--Thom Hartmann, 9/1/2023
“And I’d go further than Chris and say term limits are an actively bad idea. They’re the kind of thing that’s appealing as a last resort to an enormously frustrated electorate, but it’s merely nostalgia for a citizen legislature that never existed, where yeomen farmers would serve their country in Congress and then return to the fields. In reality, in states with term limits, politicians just race up the ladder as fast as possible and then when they’re termed out, they cash in as lobbyists. It makes the swamp swampier rather than draining it.”
–Ryan Grim, Intercept newsletter, 10/5/23
Term
limits are a natural expression of the right's government-bashing
ideology. It serves them well to eject elected officials before they are
experienced and secure enough to challenge entrenched
special interests.
What motivates some of my allies on the left to embrace term limits? Are
we willing to sacrifice the likes of Elijah Cummings, John Lewis, Barbara Lee,
Pramila Jayapal, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar, and the other Justice Democrats, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Ron Wyden, or Sheldon Whitehouse?
We revere Elijah Cummings and John Lewis for their service. Term limits
would have ended their careers years ago. What better way to discourage
ordinary citizens from a career in public service than to preordain
their firing?
Shouldn't we be countering the contempt for "career politicians" by
asking how democracy can survive without them? How many working
people--perhaps with families to support--can afford to interrupt their
nonpolitical careers for only a limited period of public service? This
country needs *more* career politicians like Bernie Sanders, Elijah
Cummings, and John Lewis.
Here’s to a more targeted attack (Primary them!) on politicians who
don’t serve the people. Those who do deserve our loyalty. And, as a
reader noted, we already have term limits; they're called elections.
Try this thought experiment. Imagine saying to your favorite legislators, "Thanks for your service but... you're fired."
@BarbaraGlassman
