Dodd And Other 'Retiring' Democrats Show Why Term Limits Are A Bad Idea

I don’t like life long politicians any more than the next guy, but the suggested remedy to the problem, term limits, are a bad idea.

First of all, term limits strike me as a smack in the face to the idea that we should be allowed to choose whomever we want to represent us, for as long as we want them to represent us. Much like the disgustingly offensive campaign finance “reform” where politicians decided to punish the average voter because elected officials are too greedy and corrupt to keep their hands out of the cookie jar, term limits seem equally offensive in a similar way.

Why should the voters of one state have to say goodbye to a good legislator simply because the voters of another state repeatedly elect a creep?

Voters in Colorado might not like the fact that voters in Massachusetts continually reelected a hypocritical, drunk, manslaughtering, liar to term after term after term, but that is their right. Massachusetts voters clearly have no shame, but under the constitution, they have the right to be greedy scum buckets interested only in the pork their clout can achieve. (Our apologies to anyone in Mass who had the dignity and ethics to vote against Kennedy before death finally drove him from office)

Voters in Florida might not like the fact that voters in West Virginia are okay with one of their elected officials being a Klansman, but too bad. Unfortunately, that’s freedom. (Sure, some people insist that Sen. Byrd isn’t a Klansman anymore, but can you ever really be a former Klansman without doing jail time? Is there such a thing as a former Nazi?)

It would be great if there was some way for the nation to eject criminals from office when the Congress or local voters refuse to do so on their own, but that sword can cut both ways, driving out good politicians too early.

More importantly though, the reason term limits are a flawed idea is being illustrated by the freshly announced retirement of corrupt legislators like Chris Dodd.

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Just how restrained will elected officials like Dodd be when they have no need to worry about voter reaction to their legislation? Term limits will actually serve to make the party system even more dictatorial than it is now, forcing exiting politicians to vote the party line out of fear of a lack of crony provided job opportunities at party aligned think tanks and similar institutions. For proof of this thesis, keep an eye on where old Dodd lands after exiting his seat.

My guess is that reckless politicians like Chris Dodd, who hopefully will one day face jail time, act more belligerent toward voter sentiment when they know they are leaving their office. It doesn’t seem wise to institutionalize that phenomenon.

A better answer would be to limit the elected officials power in the first place, by eliminating the tax code as we know it. Right now, corruptocrats like Dodd derive most of their power by acting as gatekeepers of the loopholes in the tax system. eliminate their ability to dole out loopholes, and you will eliminate their ability to create mini fiefdoms for themselves and their greedy supporters.