Rick Perry on Congressional Term Limits

Rick Perry does not support term limits for Congressional Representatives. He says it is up to the voter to pay more attention, and that if we elect people who do not represent us then we need to vote them out.

I disagree.

We know that without term limits we end up with Charlie Wrangel, Maxine Waters, San Fran Nan, John McCain, and a bunch of other lifers in Congress.

I will agree that Perry is correct in saying more people need to pay more attention. It is true that there may have been a time in America when people paying more attention was the solution to the problem.

However, today we live in the era of MTV and the iPod. Instant gratification is everything to many Americans today.So to expect people to pay enough attention over a period of time is to understand what their Congressional representative and Senator are doing? While certainly commendable, this is just not realistic. Some people today are so busy texting they don’t even look up as they walk across busy streets. Why on Earth should we think people are going to pay attention to politics?

And to think people will hold their representative accountable, especially when politicians are offering them everything they want, and offering it “free?” Quite to the contrary, I suspect the opposite would tend to unfold over time. Accountability in Congress in America's future equals "What have you done for me lately?"

We also know the power of incumbency, and therein lies much of the problem.

For example:

I'm an Arizonan, but I know I can't run for Senate against John McCain or for The House against Ben Quayle. Even if I have better ideas and more “practical” experience, money and brand name equals power. I contend that Ben Quayle never should have been elected to Congress in AZ-3 but he has name recognition due to his father’s years in Congress and term as Vice President. And McCain… enough said.


To be clear; this was for a moment a struggle in my mind between the conservative concept of individual responsibility versus the idea that government looks out best for people. However, I believe that this all falls back on the idea that our Constitution is designed so that We, The People may amend it when it is not working correctly. Congressional term limits is an instance for which it needs to be amended.

Not only that, I believe this needs to become a focal point of this election cycle, because the longer we wait, the more difficult it may become to elect and convince enough representatives that limits on their own free ride is the right thing to do. This is an instance when our Founding Fathers intended us to be responsible, and in doing so amend our Constitution to look out for our best interests moving forward.

In doing so, we will not be asking the government to look out for us, for we will have taken responsibility for ourselves, each individual adding to the collective. E Pluribus Unum.

You can see video of the statements Perry made at The Right Scoop.

Go Diamondbacks!

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