by Staff
As of April 16, 2015, four people have announced their legitimate candidacies for president of the United States. There’s one Democrat, Hillary Clinton, and three freshman Republican senators: Rand Paul, Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio. The latter are familiar with one another considering they have been fighting for the soul of the GOP since they were each elected. However, one thing brings the three republicans together that should not be hidden from the public eye: they all support congressional term limits.
Each of them has their own little spin on what it means to be a republican, even though the three probably have more in common than all the other GOP senators combined. Rubio is a young Latino with a knack for oration and bridging the gap between the Tea Party and establishment wings of the GOP. Cruz is also a Latino, except he’s a die-hard Texan that champions conservatives’ causes against the establishment. Rand Paul is the banner for modern libertarianism. He’s young and rambunctious- also seemingly the only GOP senator willing to reach outside the of the party’s base for support.
Yet, these three go at it all the time claiming that they are indeed the new face of the GOP and capable of beating Hillary Clinton. Either of them may be right, but if they continue standing by the issue of term limits they could all gain a lot of momentum going into 2016.
75 percent of Americans want congressional term limits. The three have all cosponsored a bill in the senate, S.J. Res 1 calling for a constitutional amendment that would limit federal legislators to two terms in the Senate and three in the House.
That speaks to the majority of people who are tired of a dysfunctional congress led by corrupt, career politicians ranging from Thad Cochran to Charlie Rangel. The public realizes that Washington D.C. will always have its problems, but creating a regular rotation-in-office so long-term incumbents can’t run the Capitol for decades on end is a great improvement. These three freshman realize that. Why? Because they haven’t been in Washington long enough to think otherwise.
Term limits bring about competitive open seat elections and revert more power to your vote. Without the advantage of long-term incumbency, the fear of entrenched career politicians seems to dissipate.
Though the three are the only GOP candidates to make both their candidacy and support for congressional term limits official, other POTUS hopefuls have been spotted touting term limits as a necessary reform on the campaign trail.
Rumored Democratic candidate Jim Webb was heralded as a citizen legislator when he left the Senate to return to the private sector after serving just one term. Other potential GOP hopefuls ranging from Chris Christie to Mike Huckabee have called for term limits on Congress as well.
The only real resistance the term limits movement faces is from the podiums of politicians. It’s a gold mine for any politician vying for constituent support, but some are still unwilling to cross party bosses and entrenched colleagues.
If Hillary Clinton was serious when she said “everyday Americans need a champion, and I want to be that champion,” she need look no further than term limits.
Republicans have three declared candidates championing the idea of a citizen legislature. Democratic voters deserve the same.
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