Term Limits for Congress: Fixing Campaign Finance

Campaign Finance Reform has been on the table as an issue for at least a decade. McCain-Feingold created some regulation, more transparency measures took hold in congress after the fall of Jack Abramoff.

The measures made to make an honest institution out of our current congress all miss the mark and all for the same reason. They miss the reason why congress members need all this fund raising in the first place. The reason? They are in a perpetual state of trying to get reelected.

For a lobbyist, or a corporation, nothing makes you sleep more soundly at night than knowing you will have a friend in congress for decades taking care of the legislation you need, or blocking the legislation you hate forever and ever, and only for a tiny sum every election cycle.

What if that same lobbyist had to worry that every term a new Senator or Representative was coming along? At the very least it would end the kind of long term relationships that we hear about now. Congressional offices wouldn't be swarming with lobbyists because the short term nature of the appointment to congress would entice the members to legislate their passions and not do favors to get reelected and again and again.