Term Limits is an incredibly important piece of legislation, and it defends democracy. Without it, corruption can quickly run rampant, such as the case in Venezuela, who got rid of Term Limits for its president in 2009. It’s strongly suggested that Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro rigged the election. While the Venezuelan Supreme Court ruled that Maduro won, AP News stated that the high court is packed with Maduro loyalists and has almost never ruled against the government.
They also enumerated that volunteers collected voting tallies from 80%, 80% of those 30,000 polling booths nationwide, which revealed that Edmundo González, Maduro’s opponent, won by more than a two-to-one margin. Huh.
No matter where you look, the need for term limits is everywhere. Hi, I’m Holly Robichaud and this is Breaking News on Term Limits.
Don’t voters deserve to know when their representatives have failed them by pledging their support for a pressing issue until it’s no longer convenient to them? Don’t you have a right to know if they’ve flipped on you? Term Limits Action is a YouTube channel that monitors the individuals who have flipped on their pledge. Hey, you gotta check it out.
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. Diapers and politicians must be changed often and for the same reason, and already something stinks about Derrick Van Orden. Now, politician Van Orden is breaking his US Term Limits Pledge. Term Limits Action is responsible for the content of this advertising.
Support for term limits at all levels of government is growing, and initiatives for term limits are increasing. More and more municipalities are passing and enacting term limits for city officials. What’s more is Governing Magazine recently did an article that showed that female representation on city councils has risen dramatically, more than 50% since 2016. Why? Because of term limits.
Morgan Hill, California is one of the last South Bay California cities without term limits for city officials. In a welcome turn of events, members of the city council voted to place a ballot measure that would set a limit of three or four terms or a total of 12 consecutive years on the November ballot. Way to go, Morgan Hill. Why don’t you join the movement?
In Oregon, our state co-chair Andrew Kalik penned an op-ed that has been running throughout the Beaver state. Among his excellent points, he wrote: “If voters don’t have a real choice and elected officials in turn don’t fear the ballot box, then we are left with an increasingly unaccountable system that ceases to benefit from the wisdom of the people that is the lifeblood of democracy.”
Setting congressional term limits would take power away from Washington insiders and put it back into the hands where it belongs with the people. It will diversify Congress, providing a fairer playing field for younger candidates as well as women and Hispanics, and it will lead to a Congress that is responsive and accountable to the issues facing everyday Americans.
As Benjamin Franklin, who supported term limits, aptly said: “In free governments, the rulers are the servants and the people are their superiors. For the former to return among the latter does not degrade, but promote them.” The message for congressional term limits is getting out at the state level, and the response has been enormous, as you can imagine. An additional 56 2024 state legislative candidates signed our pledge over the past two weeks. That’s right, 56.
We anticipate that after November we will have a record number of state legislators and members of Congress in office who have signed the US Term Limits Pledge. And this is happening because of people like you who support term limits and the power of your vote at the ballot box. I also want to thank our pledge team who’s out there working every day to get these pledges.
You might remember that two congressional representatives from New Jersey passed away this year, Bill Pascrell and Donald Payne. The former was replaced by state senator Nellie Pou on the November ballot as a Democratic nominee for the ninth Congressional District, according to New Jersey Monitor. While she was nominated by over 400 committee members, all the voters within that district would have had a say if term limits were in place. Pascrell had served 28 years. If he were term limited out of office years ago, voices beyond the committee members would have been heard.
The same can be argued in former representative Donald Payne’s case. He served for over two decades by the time of his passing. While there was enough time to hold a special primary election for his seat, it’s still a problem of members in Congress serving so long that they pass in office.
You know what time it is? It’s time for the corrupt politician of the week, and this week it’s Representative Doug Lamborn. Representative Lamborn was first elected to Congress in 2006. Prior to that, he served in the Colorado state legislature from 1994 until his election to Congress. Axios.com reports that Representative Lamborn was investigated by the Office of Congressional Ethics for possibility of misusing office resources, which included allowing his son to live in the basement of the US Capitol and accepting improper gifts from his aides.
According to the report, his aides testified that they were used to run errands for his wife and help his son apply for a federal job. That’s not all. According to the Denver Post, during the pandemic he refused to allow his staff members to social distance, and created an unsafe workplace. Allegedly, he contracted the virus and lied to doctors, saying that he hadn’t been in close contact with any employees who tested positive. They reported that he was sued by a staff member, and Lamborn settled the lawsuit. He’s another prime example of why we need congressional term limits.
Congressional term limits can become a reality. We’ve got the momentum, we’ve got the message, and we’ve got the support of the people, but we can’t do it without you. Are you going to go to termlimits.org today and get involved? I’d love to see your name pop up on the volunteer list. We need your help, and be sure to share this program with your family and friends. I’m Holly Robichaud for US Term Limits Breaking News. I’ll see you soon.