No to term limits!

While I can understand the broad base appeal of “term limits” I am profoundly opposed to additional limits on my rights as a voter to nominate and to vote for a candidate of my choice. We have very real term limits in place now, though for the most part we fail to engage them. Every Elected official is elected for a fixed (and generally brief) term of office. Only if the voters choose, at our highly regular elections, to grant an official an additional term do they have the opportunity to begin a new term upon a new oath. While it is true that many elected officials serve long periods in office it is only with the consent of the voters who choose to keep them there.

 

Proposals to cap the number of times a person can be elected sound appealing, especially now when we as a society are in a “throw the bums out” mindset, but just changing the people in office will not prove to accomplish much if we do not resolve the underlying problem of public disengagement and apathy. We could very easily have the same results from government, with just different people to complain about. The situation could actually become worse as unelected government employees may wind up with an even more powerful role in shaping public policy.

 

Meaningful reform of the government can only be achieved by citizens asking questions, making known their concerns, and enforcing their will by regularly and consistently holding officials to task at elections. Elected officials do and will respond to public opinion, but only when it supported by public action. We need to stop trying to change the system and change ourselves. Our refusal to join in the “political” process is the only reason we need ever consider artificial limits on our power as voters. Let us spend more time in developing and choosing our elected officials as we would with any other employee and less time on how to fire them before we even hire them.