Can we clean up by America by using term limits for congress and the Senate ?

Question

we also need to cut thier pay and I think they should be payed the same amount as our troops on the front lines we also need to make illegal for then to take money for lobbiest with mandatory prison time of ten year if their caught taking bribes.

Answer 1

Mister this is the most sensible question I have found here in quite a while, you are a true American, and what you propose is what should have bee en done years ago , we don't have statesmen any more just crooked greedy politicians who have sold out the American people and our country by selling their votes and not caring what happens to our country, please consider the tax payer paying for their campaign , and keep the lobbyist big interest etc from controlling who runs for office and who wins , the people should be the ones who elect our officials

Answer 2

The reason all you mention is such a problem is that the American public is tragically uninformed, and convinced there is nothing we can do when we are. It is said we have the best government money can buy, and it is true. Nearly every issue we discuss here is about big money. Iraq, Afghanistan, Immigration, whatever, all are about money and power. We know little of what really goes on, other than it stinks. Everything goes on behind the scenes, behind closed doors, in board rooms and on classy retreats like the Bohemian Grove. To clean it up will take a highly informed and motivated public, neither of which do we have now. Venues like Yahoo Answers afford us the opportunity to share information which never appears on the evening news or in newspapers, all of which are now owned by international corporations. We are informing each other, and it looks like the Internet is our hope for freedom from the massive corruption. This corruption of the few at the expense of the many can only continue because it is secret. The more we communicate the less secret things will be. If we work on that then the rules for Congress will change, but if we work on the rules without changing the world of secrets, nothing will change.

Answer 3

Many many years ago, in high school government class my teacher posed the question of cutting our representatives pay. Her logic was flawless then and it is now. If you, and I think you do, want the best people in our country leading the nation you will not get them to apply for the job if it doesn't pay enough. I'm only guessing, but senators and house members make mid 100s on average. Senators maybe a bit more. Um, that's not that much considering their responsibilities.

If you cut their pay, do you think they would be more or less susceptible to special interest kick back? Their pay is so incredibly insignificant when looking at the budget and the money we spend it's not an issue. Your logic is flawed. Paying them less makes them more open to lobbyist cash, can't you see that? You get what you pay for in the end.

As for term limits, I may agree. I think a performance based system would work. If you miss too many votes, don't get your name on legislation, etc. that person should have some sort of limitation on how long they can serve.

Answer 4

Great questions! Much better than most and I probably won't get reported for this answer. Some of the other questions are so bad I can't help myself giving flip answers and end up getting reported.

Unfortunately it will take a Constitutional Amendment to reduce the pay of our elected representatives and to limit their terms. We can vote them out at the next election for giving themselves a pay raise so they can't go back and collect it in their next term of office.
Raising the pay for our military is a good idea too. Of the billions spent on the Dept. of Defense budget very little goes to payroll and even less to long term benefits especially health care.

Paid lobbiests should be banned. While many are very above board in their lobbying, and many actually work for great causes, the abuse of the lobby system is so rampant that the bad seems to outweigh the good.

Another thing that should be done is to take away their retirement plan. All you have to do to get retirement payment for life is serve one term in Congress. Where else can you retire with a salary and benefits that are above most citizens gross yearly income after working for less than 4 years? Everyone else has to pay into Social Security and they should too. They will never fix that program until their golden safety net is taken away and they are made to tough it out like the rest of us.

Answer 5

Well. At last a really thought provoking question! Thanks for asking. Here's what I think:

Term limits: No. We need experience when it comes to committee assignments and leadership. What would help with the good-old-boys system is a combination of absolute spending limits for campaigning and an end to the gerrymandering that so favors incumbents. I even support government funding of elections, but I know that's really radical and won't happen. But I'm realy tired of filthy rich guys funding their own campaigns and by defaults their own agendas.

I think you're absolutely right about paying them the same as our troops. Our troops deserve a BIG raise!

Taking money from lobbyists? Send them all to the brig! Could we make that Guantanamo? Bet that would stop the abuses there.

Answer 6

Bribery is already against the law and there already are people going to jail for committing that crime. But campaign contributions are not bribes. Do you want to make all campaign contributions illegal? That is apparently what you said.

No, I don't want term limits. That has nothing at all to do with making anybody "cleaner." Presidents already are term-limited (a mistake) and it doesn't make the Presidents any "cleaner."

"We" cannot cut their pay. They have to cut their own pay. Vote for politicians who promise to do that. That is all you can do. If it doesn't happen, then too bad. All of the whining in the world isn't going to change the fact that American voters cannot, nationwide, make any laws at all. Not even to cut the pay of our members of Congress.

Answer 7

Term-limits??? No way!! It would create an even more corrupt and power-hungry mob in Congress than we already have. Instead of cutting their pay and benefits, I think the law should be that all U.S. citizens are eligible for the same healthcare package our elected representatives have! Until those people have to go without and decide between paying for gas or paying for doctor's visit, they will remain sorely out-of-touch with what many of their constituents face every day.

Answer 8

How about this for a paycut... they get paid just as you said the same as the troops (mabey the Senators get paid as much as the Officers, and the President as much as the Generals), plus anybody elected instantly recieves retirement and lifetime healthcare benefits, and gets a reasonable life insurance policy for their family's financial security. Along with this salary decrease all campaigns become publically funded.

Thats how we should deal with cleaning up ALL political offices!

Answer 9

Imposing term limits requires a Constitutional amendment. Cutting their pay requires an act of Congress. What do you think that the chances are of Congress passing either of those? f you say zero, I'd say you are an optimist.

Answer 10

I agree with cutting their pay and in ending the practice of "lobbying" - but I must say that we do have "term limits" - it is the VOTE! If more people elected to participate, we could change the way the government works!