U.S. Term Limits unveiled a quirky Article V convention education video making the case for retiring political dinosaurs from “Planet Congress”.
The fast-paced video offers a two-and-a-half minute primer on Article V of the Constitution and how it can be used to pass an amendment limiting the number of terms members can spend in the House and Senate.
One illustration shows a timeline.
“This is when dinosaurs ruled the earth. This is when Democrat Charlie Rangel was elected. This is when Republican Thad Cochran was elected,” the narrator explains over a timeline of a T-Rex, a donkey and an elephant.
“It’s like dinosaurs rule the earth all over again,” the video tells viewers.
“I’ve never seen the problem outlined as clearly nor the solution explained more cogently,” said Nick Tomboulides, executive director of U.S. Term Limits. “The video makes it clear how members with the best intentions go to Washington, have their heads turned by lobbyists, and lose touch with the people.”
U.S. Term Limits is advocating a term limits convention under Article V of the Constitution to enact a term limits amendment. Last month, the group unveiled a video spot with famed ex-lobbyist, Jack Abramoff, who explained how term limits would have prevented the scandal that ensnared him, members of congress, and their staffs in one of the nation’s most notorious corruption cases.
For more information, please call U.S. Term Limits at: 321-574-0718.
A transcript of the Article V Convention education video follows:
It doesn’t take an Einstein to figure out that DC politicians stay in office too long.
Just look. this is when dinosaurs ruled the earth.
This is when democrat Charlie Rangel was elected.
This is when republican Thad Cochran was elected.
This was when the Vietnam war ended.
and this is today that’s 45 years five hundred and fifty-two months sixteen thousand four hundred and twenty-five days
You get the idea.
It’s like dinosaurs rule the earth all over again.
How does this happen?
We elect people and sent them to Washington.
The politicians start spending time with people in Washington and less with people back home.
They meet these guys… they’re called lobbyists.
The more time they spend with these guys, the less we spent with these guys, the voters who elected them.
Instead of arguing the case in Washington for the voters, they start arguing Washington’s case to the voters.
Voters aren’t stupid.
They catch on.
But the incumbents have gathered up so much money from these guys they can just drown out the opposition.
Ninety percent of incumbents get re-elected.
The result is more money for big-time political friends.
Bailouts for big banks,
corporate welfare for the rich,
and congressmen and senators stop listening to the folks back home.
There is a solution: two words “term limits.”
George Washington believed in them, so did Jefferson, and Ben Franklin… and these were smart guys.
That’s why the founders wrote Articles V into the Constitution.
It allows the states to bypass Congress and amend the Constitution.
They wrote it that way because they understood sometimes congress won’t listen to what the people want.
That’s why it’s called the United States.
Once two-thirds of the states have called for a meeting to enact term limits, congress has to call the term limits convention to draft an amendment.
That meeting can draft an amendment on term limits and term limits only.
After it’s drafted, it goes back to the states for 38 to approve.
Because that’s how it’s supposed to work…the people like you are in charge.
If democracy is going to work, it needs rules.
One of them should be this: “the age of dinosaurs is over.”
When terms are limited the future isn’t.
So get involved today by visiting termlimitsconvention.com.