“Asking an incumbent member of Congress to vote for term limits is a bit like asking a chicken to vote for Colonel Sanders.” -Bob Inglis
Lane/Tommy: Sadly our Founding Fathers left term limits out of our Constitution which has resulted in career politicians with the belief that they can hold office for life, which undoubtedly has Revolutionary War soldiers turning over in their graves wondering when the second revolution will happen.
That is why we are in favor of term limits for all levels of government from Washington, D.C. down to the municipal level in Maine. Some would argue that term limits are not necessary because citizens are elected to office for a set amount of time and must fight for reelection. Facts show that during the 1980s an unimaginable 99.3 percent of incumbents at the national and state levels were, in fact, reelected. In the elections of 1990 an incredible 98 percent of incumbents for Congress were reelected. It is obvious our present political system heavily favors the incumbent, especially where there are no term limits.
Lane: I think one of the best analogies was made when someone stated that becoming a politician must be more difficult that becoming a brain surgeon. The excuse that it takes decades to learn our political system borders on the absurd.
When elected representatives fight term limits I have to wonder why. All one has to do is look at the individual politician’s history to see that it can become a lifetime career. Most wouldn’t have a clue for a job in real life.
Tommy: Is it time for term limits in the town of Windham and other municipalities in Maine? When an elected or appointed group has no term limits, is it as Thomas Jefferson once said, “We shouldn’t allow any one person to hold power for long because power corrupts?”
If term limits are so bad, why then do the experienced legislators act so poorly when it comes to overtaxing the people? Some of our locally elected officials in Windham along with a few appointed officials believe they rule their own little fiefdom. Watching a recent school board meeting it is evident that longtime members of the school board dominate discussions and policy.
It becomes apparent after a lengthy period of time in office that elected officials champion the personal interests of their group rather than that of the public. Part of the Windham school board’s discussion was about academic qualifications to play sports. Shouldn’t they have been discussing education rising above sports eligibility? That was not the case.
Lane/Tommy: Here are our proposed ideas for term limits at all levels. Of course, our president is already limited to two terms in office. For Congress we recommend four terms for the House of Representatives and two terms for the Senate with the total amount of years served in both not to exceed 12 years.
Forget about pensions and all the other benefits, also. Maine has already established term limits for its members of Maine’s House of Representatives and Senate but the fight continues over either broadening the term limits or abolishing them all together.
Lane: For the Windham Town Council I recommend no more than three terms during a lifetime. Nine years is plenty of time to sink or swim. I also recommend that we have term limits for the town manager. Since the mayor of cities like New York City have term limits, doesn’t it make sense that our town manager not only be elected but also follow a similar policy of having a term limit?
Tommy: I feel that the Windham School Board members should also be limited to three terms during a lifetime. Time limits are very democratic. Time limits would stimulate more public participation by attracting new candidates into the political system. Setting term limits would also have the effect of curbing favoritism in hiring and other decisions such as contracts.
Lane/Tommy: In the town of Gray there is now going to be discussion about voting on the budget on Election Day by either secret or absentee ballot. If the old political establishment had remained in office would this discussion ever have taken place? Why isn’t it taking place in Windham and other towns? Could it be that the incumbents fear their own fiefdom might crumble?
When we look at our government at all levels today, what we see is something significantly different from what our Founding Fathers envisioned for us. We feel that political careerism has destroyed America. We must change our system across this country in order that it is not run by career politicians and lobbyists. We must be governed by true citizen legislators at all levels. When will the next revolution begin? November 2006 in Maine?
Send questions/comments to the editors.
