Philip Blumel: Term limits for president. Hi, I’m Philip Blumel. Welcome to No Uncertain Terms, the official podcast of the Term Limits Movement. This is Episode 216, posted on June 26th, 2023.
Stacey Selleck: Your sanctuary from partisan politics.
Philip Blumel: We have gotten a lot of positive feedback about our last episode, about the growing field of term limit supporters that are running for president. Yes, it is rather exciting, ain’t it? But to put it into context, I wanna point out that it really is not the President’s decision, but that doesn’t mean that the President doesn’t have a lot to say about whether we’re gonna impose term limits on the US Congress. According to the Supreme Court decision in 1995, US Term Limits versus Thornton, term limits must be imposed on the Congress via constitutional amendment. That’s the only way it can get done. So that means either the Congress has to pass the amendment or the states can do so using the Article V Convention process, or a third route is that the Article V Convention process can put pressure on Congress to act so that they would work in concert.
Philip Blumel: Well, you could see looking at this third scenario how important it would be to have a president that was banging his or her bully pulpit and having pressure coming up from the states and down from the President. And of course, when the issue hits from the people, when they’re engaged with over 80% of Americans supporting this issue, you can see the intense pressure that’s gonna be on the US Congress to act. So let’s continue in the same vein as last episode because one presidential aspirant that we’ve not mentioned yet is Asa Hutchinson. He was the former governor of Arkansas and he has thrown his hat into the ring for president of the United States. Here is former Governor Hutchinson on the Insider’s Program several months ago. This is from WHO Channel 13 in Des Moines, Iowa.
Asa Hutchinson: You know, I actually supported term limits for Congress when I was state party chairman in Arkansas and we enacted congressional limits, but they were struck down by the courts. And so I’m fine with it, but it’s problematic. It is through the courts and under our constitution.
Philip Blumel: In other words, if I can translate this for you, he’s seen the polling, but he’s still against it. [chuckle] You know, the term limits story runs through Arkansas. The 1995 Supreme Court case I mentioned, US Term Limits versus Thornton, which nicks term limits on congressional delegations in 23 states. Well, that was an Arkansas case, and the Arkansas legislature fought tooth and nail against state level term limits after it passed in 1992, coming back again and again with legislative challenges and legal challenges. Now, meanwhile, governor Asa Hutchinson was tight-lipped as his Republican majority beat down term limits. You know, he was wishy-washy here, but we know better. Asa Hutchinson goes in the anti term limits column. We also mentioned last week that Chris Christie is a nominal supporter of term limits, and he always has been. Christie, of course, was the former governor of New Jersey, and at a town hall meeting just last week in New Hampshire, he was asked about the issue from a voter and let’s listen to all of his remarks.
Chris Christie: Look, I’m all for term limits. I was for term limits when I was governor. We have a guy in the state legislature in New Jersey who’s been there 50 years now. 50. You know, my point is like, if you haven’t gotten it done in 50 years, maybe it’s just time to go home, and nobody is indispensable enough, nobody. And the proof of that is, in my state, I know we don’t have them here, but in my state, the governor has term limits. I had two terms. We have a two term limit for our president. I think there should be term limits for everybody. I think that term limits should be for the folks in the house, they get six terms, 12 years. And for the folks in the Senate, they get two terms, 12 years. If you go to Washington for 12 years and you can’t get done what you want to get done, which is four more years than any president will get, it’s time to go home.
Chris Christie: Now, let’s be honest about it, the hard part that’s gonna be, the Congress has to vote term limits on themself, right? I’ll give you an example of how crazy that stuff is. So in New Jersey, the legislature would never consider term limiting themselves. In fact, what the legislature in New Jersey did was they passed a law that said that there has to be open records, whatever. If someone asked for records from the governor, from the governor’s office, the executive branch of government, you wanna see them, we gotta turn them over. And they used to send open records requests to us, the legislature did. So I said, “Well, how come… If that applies to you guys too?” No, no, no, no. No, no, no, they don’t have to turn over any of their records to the press, to the public, or to the governor.
Chris Christie: So I wanna be honest with you about it. I’m for it. If a piece of legislation came to my desk, I would sign it as fast as it got there, in the middle of the night if it got there, wake me up and let me sign it, whatever I needed to do. And if there was a constitutional amendment put forward, I would go out and campaign for it. So I think it’s important to do because I do think people are there too long. And look, if you want, just one example of it right now, look at Dianne Feinstein from California. Now, I’ve known her for a long time, and when she first came, even though I didn’t agree with much of what she was for, she was a smart, active, tough United States senator for California. They’re pushing her around in a wheelchair now, and she was out, not able to vote, not able to speak, not able to analyze for months. People shouldn’t stay that long.
Philip Blumel: Now, Governor Christie definitely goes in the pro-term limits column, but I know here he doesn’t seem to know much about what’s going on with the issue right now. One, he cites 12-year limits, which is way out of step with the Term Limits Movement and the public according to polls. Plus, he doesn’t seem to know about the term limits convention and that states are calling for an amendment writing convention limited to the subject of congressional term limits. Nonetheless, it’s great to hear a candidate for the presidency speaking so clearly in support of the concept. Speaking of the term limits convention, you know, we’re on the verge of a vote in the North Carolina Senate, which will determine whether or not North Carolina becomes the seventh state to officially apply for the term limits convention. So if you live in North Carolina, please go to termlimits.com/takeaction and send a message to the relevant players in North Carolina.
Philip Blumel: If you know anyone in North Carolina, send them the link, ask them to help, because in North Carolina, the term limits convention has already passed the House and we’re waiting on a vote in the Senate. The issue is very much alive, but it is no slam dunk. What happens in the next week or so might make all the difference, so please act now. Next, in her latest installment of the YouTube series, Breaking News on Term Limits, Holly Robichaud covers the current battle for the Term Limits Convention in North Carolina, also the fading Senator Dianne Feinstein and the potentially imminent vote on the Us Term Limits amendment in the US House.
Holly Robichaud: The push for congressional term limits is happening at the state level where a growing number of states have passed our term limits on Congress resolution with more planning to do so. North Carolina may be next on our list. The State House under the leadership of Speaker Tim Moore has passed our resolution. The State Senate could pass it at any moment. Hi, I’m Holly Robichaud and this is Breaking News On Term Limits.
Holly Robichaud: Momentum continues to build for House Joint Resolution 11 sponsored by Representative Ralph Norman of South Carolina. As I previously mentioned, the resolution known as Us Term Limits Amendment now has 97 co-sponsors and counting, with support from both sides of the aisle. We expect that number to reach 100 any day now, as we are close to 150 strong supporters of term limits serving in Congress right now. Could your representative be our 100th sponsor? Please also contact your US Representative and urge them to co-sponsor House Joint Resolution 11 if they already haven’t. In the US Senate, Texas Senator Ted Cruz continues to be a tireless advocate for term limits. He has sponsored as we’ve mentioned before, Senate Joint Resolution 2. It’s a companion bill to House Joint Resolution 11. This legislation now has 16 co-sponsors, one of whom is Tim Scott, who entered the presidential race this week. We’re hoping that Senator Scott will sign our Presidential Term Limits Pledge.
Holly Robichaud: House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has promised us a vote on House Joint Resolution 11, that would set term limits on Congress. This would be the first vote on this issue since 1995. The Speaker could schedule the vote at any time, so we’ll keep you posted as developments happen. Please visit termlimits.com/McCarthy to sign our petition to urge Speaker Kevin McCarthy to bring our House Joint Resolution 11 to the floor for a vote as soon as possible.
Holly Robichaud: We’ve been covering very closely the story about California Senator Dianne Feinstein, who was first elected in 1992. She’s recently returned to the Senate after being out of office for two months. We’re glad she’s able to return and we wish her a continued recovery. However, questions are being raised about her return. It has come out that the senator has been far sicker than first reported, and Politico report she has an aid with her to help identify fellow senators. Representative Katie Porter, a Democrat who’s seeking the Feinstein seat in 2024, told CNN this week that the Senate needs to adopt new policies to deal with in-firm senators as the average age of the Senate is rising. We have a suggestion for Representative Porter, it’s called congressional term limits. Did you know that before there was US Term Limits, there wasn’t one state that term limited their legislature? Not one. Now because of US Term Limits, there are 16 states that have term limits on their legislature. Now let’s make it happen in Congress.
Philip Blumel: Thank you, Holly. To visit Holly’s Breaking News on Term Limits, go to youtube.com/ustermlimits. Next, we talk a lot on this podcast about how many pledges we’ve collected from members of Congress pledging to co-sponsor and vote for the US Term Limits’ amendment of three terms in the House and two terms in the Senate and “no longer limit.” Most politicians actually live up to this pledge eventually. Sometimes we have to knock on the door and remind them, but the truth is most live up to their word. Have you ever wondered what happens to the scofflaws who don’t? Well, the answer is something like this.
Speaker 6: When Claudia Tenney wanted your vote, she signed the US Term Limits pledge, but now Congresswoman Claudia Tenney is breaking her US Term Limits pledge. Term Limits Action is responsible for the content of this advertising.
Philip Blumel: Representative Claudia Tenney of New York was so mad about this ad that she wrote a newspaper op-ed calling us all sorts of names and not apologizing. Technically, this ad wasn’t even run by US Term Limits, but by a group called Term Limits Action, but US Term Limits also sends mailers and puts up billboards in scofflaws’ districts. Look here, Representative Tenney, you signed a pledge, you bragged about it while running for office, and then when you got elected, you refused to honor it, and you are blaming us? And now, a recent and telling comment from Representative Jamie Raskin of Maryland who may or may not run for the open seat created by the retirement of US Senator Ben Cardin of that state.
Speaker 7: Have you decided, are you going to run for Senate?
Jamie Raskin: I’ve not decided. I love the House of Representatives. I love the people I serve with, and I love being in the People’s House. But as some of my House colleagues have pointed out, these Senate seats only open up every 25 or 30 years, every 25 or 30 years, every 25 or 30 years…
Philip Blumel: Thank you Representative Raskin for making the case for term limits so succinctly. Senate elections are so uncompetitive that an incumbent pretty much has to retire, die, or be incarcerated for an open seat to appear. I’ve been speaking on this issue for many years and I used to say you’d have to be indicted, but nowadays, so many indicted representatives and senators are re-elected. That’s the power of the incumbency in this country. Did you know incumbent senators running to keep their own seat in the November ’22 elections won 100% of the time? Every single one. They call this country divided, doesn’t sound like to me. Sounds like everybody loves their incumbent politicians. There’s something wrong with this picture. Yes, representative Raskin, by all means, run, run, run. Your victory is by no means assured, but running for an open seat, you have a fighting chance in a competitive election. Once you’re in, you can lock the door behind you and coast into retirement some 25 or 30 years hence.
Philip Blumel: True or false, the 22nd Amendment limits the president and vice president from holding office for more than two terms or eight years? False. There is no mention of the vice president in the 22nd Amendment. Let’s hear podcaster and YouTuber Mr. Beat give us a little civics lesson on the subject.
Mr. Beat: Sure, there are term limits for presidents, but vice presidents, they can serve forever. In order to become a vice president in the United States, you have to be a natural born citizen, at least 35 years old and a resident in the country for at least 14 years. Oh, and they can’t be a former president. Well, probably, some constitutional scholars argue a former president could be appointed vice president to avoid going against the 22nd Amendment. But I digress. A vice president though can run for re-election as many times as they want to. Theoretically, someone could become vice president at the age of 35 and serve for the next 75 years, if they live a long life and stuff. That said, so far at least, no vice president has ever served more than two full terms and only two vice presidents have ever served under two different presidents, John Calhoun and George Clinton. Not that George Clinton.
Philip Blumel: For more information on Mr. Beat, go to iammrbeat.com or check out his podcast, The Beat Pod.
Speaker 10: This is a public service announcement.
Philip Blumel: James O’Keefe is a political activist and provocateur known for using hidden cameras and stings to capture politicians and other figures making statements in private that they would never knowingly make in public. Well, last week he released audio of a private conversation with a Serge Varley, a technology recruiter with BlackRock, the world’s largest and perhaps most politically active asset manager in the US. This is pretty standard O’Keefe fair, and interesting to us here mainly because of the explosive reaction the tape received from Newsmax commentator Rob Carson on last Wednesday’s radio show and podcast. Let’s hear it.
Rob Carson: Back to James O’Keefe interviewing this guy Serge Varley about politicians who are bought and paid for like Joe Biden and so many. What is a Senator cost you nowadays?
Serge Varley: All of these financial institutions, they buy politicians. You can take this big f*** ton of money and then you can start to buy people. I work for a company called BlackRock.
Rob Carson: Meet Serge Varley, a recruiter at BlackRock. Hi Serge!
Serge Varley: Let me tell you, it’s not who’s the president. It’s who’s controlling the wallet.
Speaker 13: And who’s that?
Serge Varley: The hedge funds, BlackRock, the banks. These guys run them. Campaign financing. You can buy your candidates. Obviously we have the system in place. First there’s the senators and these guys are f***ing cheap.
Rob Carson: He says you gotta know how the system works. First there’s the senators. These guys can be had for cheap.
Serge Varley: About ten grand you can buy.
Rob Carson: Ten grand you can buy a senator.
Serge Varley: A senator. I can give you 500k right now. No questions asked. I give it to you so we’re done.
Speaker 13: That’s like…
Rob Carson: I think we know why they don’t want term limits. Right? Don’t you suppose the reason why they want Washington DC senators and members of Congress in there for life? Because they don’t want to upset the apple cart. You wonder why they come up with massive spending bills and you scratch your head why the hell are they sending a trillion dollars for green energy? Oh, boom! [chuckle] Come on! This is why they don’t want term limits. Because they can buy people. If a new senator comes in they got to start all over again. Right?
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Philip Blumel: Thanks for joining us for another episode of No Uncertain Terms. The Term Limits Convention bills are moving through the state legislatures. This could be a breakthrough year for the Term Limits Movement. To check on the status of the Term Limits convention resolution in your state, go to termlimits.com/takeaction. There, you will see if it has been introduced and where it stands in the commissioning process on its way to the floor vote. If there’s action to take, you’ll see a take action button by your state. Click it. This will give you the opportunity to send a message to the most relevant legislators, urging them to support the legislation. They have to know you are watching. That’s termlimits.com/takeaction. If your state has already passed the Term Limits convention resolution, or the bill has not been introduced in your state, you can still help. Please consider making a contribution to US Term Limits. It is our aim to hit the reset button on the US Congress and you can help. Go to termlimits.com/donate. Termlimits.com/donate. Thanks. We’ll be back next week.
Stacey Selleck: Find us on most social media at US Term Limits, like us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, and now LinkedIn.
Speaker 10: USTL.
