[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 1 (Tuesday, January 7, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E70]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       IT IS TIME FOR TERM LIMITS

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                           HON. BILL McCOLLUM

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, January 7, 1997

  Mr. McCOLLUM. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to introduce a proposed 
amendment to the Constitution limiting the terms of Members of the 
House to 12 years of service and Senators to 12 years of service. This 
is a proposal I have enthusiastically pushed for over the years and one 
I continue to support.
  Many may remember the term limits bill the House considered in March 
1995 as part of the Contract with America. This is the exact same bill. 
I was excited when the first ever vote in the House produced 227 ayes. 
While this is a majority, it was not the two-thirds majority needed to 
pass a proposed constitutional amendment. I look forward to addressing 
this issue again in the 105th Congress.
  The arguments for term limits are numerous and persuasive. Volumes 
could be written on the issue, but I would like to stress one point. 
Term limits are not simply to create turnover for the sake of turnover. 
Sure, it is important to get fresh blood in Congress, but it is more 
important to change the institution as a whole in a manner that only 
term limits can achieve. Term limits would end the pervasive careerism 
in Congress.
  Mr. Speaker, the status quo in Congress encourages longevity in 
service. One's impact in Congress is almost always directly related to 
the length of time the Member has served. This is due to the fact that 
the House and Senate are directed primarily by the elected leadership 
and the full and subcommittee chairmen. Few rise to these levels 
without significant time served.
  Therefore, many Members will do their best to stay in Congress as 
long as possible, making it a career. It is my firm belief that human 
nature dictates that most Members of Congress, whether Republican or 
Democrat, are going to worry more about getting reelected than anything 
else in the career oriented environment of the present system. 
Consequently the tendency of most will be to try to please every 
interest group in order to get reelected. While term limits would not 
completely end this attitude, it would mitigate it considerably because 
term limits would mean that when somebody is elected to Congress they 
would know that they were only coming here to serve a short period of 
time, not to make a career out of it. I am firmly convinced that this 
is the single biggest obstacle to getting a balanced budget and making 
some of the tough decisions that have to be made as we move into the 
21st century.
  Finally, Mr. Speaker, term limits is supported by over 70 percent of 
Americans. This is not a partisan issue. It is a sound proposal with 
popular support. Isn't it time that Congress passed this critical 
reform?

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