The Two Party Monopoly

[RoyalShock]

rayc, don't leave it to us. We need more participants in the arena of ideas!

I do like your idea of limited committee memberships. It would be a pretty good start. I also understand the perceived advantage to having experienced congressman. But you'll have that one way or the other, only it might be a 3rd-term member instead of an 8th-term member.

The concept of us blaming other people's congressman and not our own is true, but it also hints at part of the problem. When a congressman begins to inherit power (and can get lots of "stuff" for his district), what motivation is there for his constituents to vote for his opponent, who will have to start at the bottom? Meanwhile other districts that want "stuff" don't get it or feel they have to keep voting their rep back in to get it. Obviously, I don't support the idea of districts getting "stuff", but that's the system right now and once a rep gets senior power it can become a vicious cycle. Or, not so much a cycle but a heirarchy that becomes static at the top.

[notmyeye]

Term limits are a great idea. Problem is, congress would never pass them if it was left up to them. No branch of government will ever limit its own power. It would take every state legislature to take action on the matter (either through a constitutional convention [unlikely] or by enacting limits on their own representatives).

Senate terms are six years for good reason, it provides some manner of continuity in government. Every four years you could have a brand new House and President, six year senate terms at least prevent the US government from flailing with the breeze. Since it's the more 'prestigious' legislative chamber, I don't think 12 years total is a bad idea. The strict rules regarding the senate (ie, cloture) further prevent abuses by one party/power/interest group. While it sucks when it seems like government doesn't do anything, the senate needs to be a slow, deliberative organization. When most congress-critters don't even read the whole piece of legislation, they all need to be forced to tap the brakes a bit.

The house on the other hand, has no such checks. The larger membership pool also makes the makeup of the chamber from changing too dramatically with each election cycle. I think six years for a US Rep is enough. Enough time to make a positive difference, but a short enough time to keep you from being a life-long politican.

[Ixiah]

One thing I personally believe should be made illegal is Gerrymandering. It serves no purpose except to keep incumbents in their seats.

[jocoshock]

One thing I personally believe should be made illegal is Gerrymandering. It serves no purpose except to keep incumbents in their seats.

You beat me to it. I concur 100 percent. If you look at some of the wacky district boundaries bargained by the Democrats and Republicans to make districts non-competive, you have a stroke.

I think less than 15% of the Districts are truly competive (approximately).

:good:

[1979Shocker]

Here's a list of states that have term limits for their local state legislators.

http://www.ncsl.org/programs/legismgt/about/states.htm