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Edited by Mrph1 on Nov 30th 2023 at 11:03:59 AM

CenturyEye Tell Me, Have You Seen the Yellow Sign? from I don't know where the Yith sent me this time... Since: Jan, 2017 Relationship Status: Having tea with Cthulhu
Tell Me, Have You Seen the Yellow Sign?
#185451: Apr 28th 2017 at 11:27:49 AM

‘They’re dead to me.’ Atlanta mayoral candidates clash over Braves move While I'm utterly indifferent to the braves' move, it and this series of responses does demonstrate the less than healthy weaknesses of some central cities vis-a-vis their metropolitan areas. And a whole chunk of this story is in the comments where a city-burb cultural clash is playing out.

Oh, and a gubernatorial candidate wants GA to have its very own Trump Georgia 2018: Fixin’ to get ready to run for governor

[S]tate Sen. Michael Williams has unveiled a new website (“Williams for Georgia 2018”) that includes an attack on “career politicians pushing us further down the road to less freedom and more government!” Not that he has Cagle in mind.

Williams, a businessman who once owned a chain of Sport Clips barber shops, has hinted repeatedly he would run for governor in 2018 after Donald Trump’s victory.

His strategist, Seth Weathers, said [State Senator Williams] has been encouraged by people “looking for a viable candidate for governor other than the same career politicians.”

“As the first Republican elected official in Georgia to endorse Trump, a lot of that core Trump base is looking to Williams as someone who can carry that mantle at the state level,” said Weathers. “He’s leaving all options open.”

(Emphasis added)
Then again, Kemp already has his GA First slogan up...Some people just know good role models when they see them.

Look with century eyes... With our backs to the arch And the wreck of our kind We will stare straight ahead For the rest of our lives
MadSkillz Destroyer of Worlds Since: Mar, 2013 Relationship Status: I only want you gone
Destroyer of Worlds
#185452: Apr 28th 2017 at 11:30:21 AM

No because then we'll just end up with lots of people rotating in with no idea how anything works too often.

We don't need Senators in the same role for decades. Plus it keeps Senate fresh.

Here:

Members of Congress will have less time in office to develop financially beneficial commitments to lobbyists and other special interest groups, thereby undermining the threat of lobbyists being a primary influence on legislation.

Since the time of the Founding Fathers, a general consensus states that people, when given power, will eventually be corrupted by it. If Congress has term limits in place, their power will also be limited. Candidates will be more likely to run for the purpose of serving the people, and they would have to leave office before corruption dominates their decisions.

Congress is heavily entrenched in partisan politics, resulting in gridlock when trying to pass any legislation. If term limits were enacted, toeing the party line would be less important, as the need for re-election and holding onto party seats would no longer be the driving force behind most legislative decisions. Congress would have an easier time passing the legislation that would make a positive difference for the nation.

Money is a major factor in who will win an election. Incumbents have the benefit of the profits they made while in power — plus the backing of their party, contributing organizations and special interests — to get re-elected. However, these wealthy incumbents are often not the best person for the job, as they are so far-removed from the daily realities of the American people. A middle class person who better understands the problems facing the average citizen is highly unlikely to get elected over a wealthy incumbent. Term limits will help to eliminate the shady, profitable relationships between members of Congress and special interest groups, and therefore reduce the wealth gap between candidates. In turn, more qualified people will have a real opportunity to win elections.

This is the main things I'm thinking about it.

megaeliz Since: Mar, 2017
#185453: Apr 28th 2017 at 11:30:50 AM

Yeah, while I can see the reasoning behind term limits and even when they useful, I can also see how they might also be a problem.

edited 28th Apr '17 11:33:50 AM by megaeliz

vandro Shop Owner from The little shop that wasn't Since: Jul, 2009
Shop Owner
#185454: Apr 28th 2017 at 11:32:02 AM

I personally have a distaste for congressmen to have no limits, here it has led to little fiefdoms. But our lobbying apparatus is far more constrained, so I guess it evens out.

AmbarSonofDeshar Since: Jan, 2010
#185455: Apr 28th 2017 at 11:34:12 AM

Because nothing will reduce corruption in politics like making lobbyists and special interest groups the only part of the government that doesn't change.

CrimsonZephyr Would that it were so simple. from Massachusetts Since: Aug, 2010 Relationship Status: It's complicated
Would that it were so simple.
#185456: Apr 28th 2017 at 11:36:04 AM

Honestly, I think what our present predicament shows is that we need more elitism, not less, in who is allowed to hold office, and more frequent elections bringing in fresh slates of candidates works contrary to that. More gatekeeping is the key, a political priestly caste separate from the drooling great unwashed.

"For all those whose cares have been our concern, the work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die."
M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#185457: Apr 28th 2017 at 11:38:20 AM

We don't need more elitism. We need more experience and expertise.

Disgusted, but not surprised
Silasw A procrastination in of itself from A handcart to hell (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: And they all lived happily ever after <3
A procrastination in of itself
#185458: Apr 28th 2017 at 11:39:03 AM
Thumped: Wow. That was rude. Too many of this kind of thump will bring a suspension. Please keep it civil.
“And the Bunny nails it!” ~ Gabrael “If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we.” ~ Cyran
megaeliz Since: Mar, 2017
#185459: Apr 28th 2017 at 11:39:27 AM

Personally, I would be for imposing a civil service test in order to run for election. You need to do one for most civil servant positions, so why not politicians.

CrimsonZephyr Would that it were so simple. from Massachusetts Since: Aug, 2010 Relationship Status: It's complicated
Would that it were so simple.
#185460: Apr 28th 2017 at 11:45:22 AM

It should be exceptionally difficult. There just isn't enough gatekeeping in American politics. That's what lets idiocy propagate.

"For all those whose cares have been our concern, the work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die."
Krieger22 Causing freakouts over sourcing since 2018 from Malaysia Since: Mar, 2014 Relationship Status: I'm in love with my car
Causing freakouts over sourcing since 2018
#185461: Apr 28th 2017 at 11:47:20 AM

Term limits reducing partisanship will probably be at the expense of cultivating old boys' clubs and good old fashioned embezzlement.

Because, if you haven't noticed, that is exactly what is happening in the White House right now.

I have disagreed with her a lot, but comparing her to republicans and propagandists of dictatorships is really low. - An idiot
SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#185462: Apr 28th 2017 at 11:47:54 AM

Or you'll see term limited politicians enacting blatant pro-[insert special interest group with job offers] policies because they don't have to answer to voters anymore.

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
TobiasDrake (•̀⤙•́) (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Arm chopping is not a love language!
(•̀⤙•́)
#185463: Apr 28th 2017 at 11:51:29 AM

The last thing our elections system needs is to encourage politicians to ignore their constituencies more.

My Tumblr. Currently side-by-side liveblogging Digimon Adventure, sub vs dub.
CenturyEye Tell Me, Have You Seen the Yellow Sign? from I don't know where the Yith sent me this time... Since: Jan, 2017 Relationship Status: Having tea with Cthulhu
Tell Me, Have You Seen the Yellow Sign?
#185464: Apr 28th 2017 at 11:55:17 AM

Term limits on Congress is one of Trump's better ideas.

No because then we'll just end up with lots of people rotating in with no idea how anything works too often.

And with lobbyists - which are not subject to term limits - becoming the institutional root of the system. And competent politicians removed from office for no good reason.

Term limits may create a more responsive legislature, but one has to remember that term limits prevent people who would have won an election from standing again. So, you'd have to campaign on either overcoming incumbent advantage (sure to thrill about all of Congress) or on voters are morons.

On people not knowing how things work, the M Cs are use to be swell deal-makers and spoke a common lawyer-CEO creole language, but for the contents of any policy the often hire experts and "experts." One can find those with backgrounds in their topic, but given the priorities of M Cs, there's as much reason to suppose that they've fallen out of date as kept current.

The lobbying thing is the hang-up. The absence of a re-election campaign may render solicitation of "special interest money" pointless, but there's still other offices to run for, potential jobs afterward, and "expert authority" power based on just seeming to know what one is talking about.

Then there's a slight problem with getting people to vote their conscience. That's not necessarily a good thing. The junior members of congress/ tea partiers are more than happy to do just that, and twas only near riots on the street (threatening their fellow partisans reelection chances) that kept them from leading the repeal of the ACA.

Not that it doesn't sound good when one is thinking of McConnell...Me, I once mused about having members of Congress cleared for reelection by a first round of polling in a random district far away from their own (if only to emphasize national interests as much as local).

edited 28th Apr '17 11:59:16 AM by CenturyEye

Look with century eyes... With our backs to the arch And the wreck of our kind We will stare straight ahead For the rest of our lives
MadSkillz Destroyer of Worlds Since: Mar, 2013 Relationship Status: I only want you gone
Destroyer of Worlds
#185465: Apr 28th 2017 at 11:56:08 AM

Or you'll see term limited politicians enacting blatant pro-[insert special interest group with job offers] policies because they don't have to answer to voters anymore.

It'd do the fact opposite as it discourages partisanship and makes senators less likely to pass policies for special interest groups.

In fact, there was a study done that I linked to a while back which shows that term limits inhibits corporate influence.

edited 28th Apr '17 12:00:12 PM by MadSkillz

Krieger22 Causing freakouts over sourcing since 2018 from Malaysia Since: Mar, 2014 Relationship Status: I'm in love with my car
Causing freakouts over sourcing since 2018
#185466: Apr 28th 2017 at 12:00:21 PM

[up]According to what? Don't these term limited senators have a career beyond being a senator anyway? Such as, horror of horrors, the speech circuit?

I have disagreed with her a lot, but comparing her to republicans and propagandists of dictatorships is really low. - An idiot
MadSkillz Destroyer of Worlds Since: Mar, 2013 Relationship Status: I only want you gone
Destroyer of Worlds
#185467: Apr 28th 2017 at 12:01:44 PM

Honestly, I think what our present predicament shows is that we need more elitism, not less, in who is allowed to hold office, and more frequent elections bringing in fresh slates of candidates works contrary to that. More gatekeeping is the key, a political priestly caste separate from the drooling great unwashed.

Daily reminder that the unwashed masses picked Hillary and the elites picked Trump.

Wryte Since: Jul, 2010
#185469: Apr 28th 2017 at 12:03:54 PM

Daily reminder that the unwashed masses picked Hillary and the elites picked Trump.

...I'm sorry, what?

MadSkillz Destroyer of Worlds Since: Mar, 2013 Relationship Status: I only want you gone
Destroyer of Worlds
#185470: Apr 28th 2017 at 12:05:16 PM

...I'm sorry, what?

Hillary won the popular vote and Trump won the electorate vote.

Krieger22 Causing freakouts over sourcing since 2018 from Malaysia Since: Mar, 2014 Relationship Status: I'm in love with my car
Causing freakouts over sourcing since 2018
#185471: Apr 28th 2017 at 12:07:52 PM

One second you're claiming that it was the white working class that elected Trump despite every exit poll pointing out that the shift was with white middle class voters, the next you're claiming it was the elite.

Make a choice and stand by it.

edited 28th Apr '17 12:10:55 PM by Krieger22

I have disagreed with her a lot, but comparing her to republicans and propagandists of dictatorships is really low. - An idiot
Mio Since: Jan, 2001
#185472: Apr 28th 2017 at 12:08:32 PM

I don't know if it's been reported here yet but, Congress has passed a bill that will fund the government for another week which will hopefully be enough time to get a full appropriations bill passed.

I should note it has not been mentioned whether Trump has or will sign the bill or not. It's possible he might veto or refuse to sign it out of spite, but I'm guessing it must have a veto proof majority for people to not even mention the possibility of such a thing happening.

Silasw A procrastination in of itself from A handcart to hell (4 Score & 7 Years Ago) Relationship Status: And they all lived happily ever after <3
A procrastination in of itself
#185473: Apr 28th 2017 at 12:09:22 PM

It'd do the fact opposite as it discourages partisanship and makes senators less likely to pass policies for special interest groups.

In fact, there was a study done that I linked to a while back which shows that term limits inhibits corporate influence.

Discouraging partisanship doesn't inherently disadvantage special interest groups, special interest groups have influence beyond helping reelection, they also often target politicans regardless of which part they belong to. If the party looses influence than the gains will be made by special interest groups, not by the people (who now have no way to hold rotten politicans to account).

You don't seem to realise the cooperate influence on politicans comes in forms other than campaign donations, infact while campaign donations are a big factor I'd wager that it's far from the biggest one.

I'll take a link to that study by the way.

“And the Bunny nails it!” ~ Gabrael “If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we.” ~ Cyran
Wryte Since: Jul, 2010
#185474: Apr 28th 2017 at 12:09:51 PM

That doesn't make Trump elected by elites. One of the things that came up in the discussion about the electoral college after the election was just what a bunch of random schlubs the electors actually are. Calling those people "elites" is to broaden the term to the point of meaninglessness.

Trump won because of the common moron who got swindled by his twisted version of charisma. Actual elites - intellectuals, business leaders, politicians, etc - overwhelmingly went for Hillary.

MadSkillz Destroyer of Worlds Since: Mar, 2013 Relationship Status: I only want you gone
Destroyer of Worlds
#185475: Apr 28th 2017 at 12:10:57 PM

According to what? Don't these term limited senators have a career beyond being a senator anyway? Such as, horror of horrors, the speech circuit?

I'll take a link to that study by the way.

Found the study.

Boom.

I'll quote some others part

Through formal models and statistical analysis, Powell teases out the personal, institutional and political factors that make moneyed interests increasingly powerful in some states, but not others. For example, her data shows that political money carries more weight in states with more highly compensated legislators, larger chambers, and more professionalized leadership structures. Money is also more important in states whose majority party's advantage is tightly contested and whose legislators are more likely to hold hopes of running for higher office.

By contrast, donors to campaign coffers wield less power in states with term limits and more highly educated voters.

These conditions, writes Powell, predict how much time legislators devote to fundraising for themselves and for their party. She shows that the more time members spend on either type of fundraising, the greater the influence of contributions in the legislative process. "I am not arguing that there is much quid-pro-quo influence," says Powell. "But even the best intentioned legislator receiving money from an interest group is likely to at least listen to what donors have to say. And if you are hearing much more from people who donate money to you, it is hard not to be swayed by the greater body of argument and evidence from donors."

edited 28th Apr '17 12:15:15 PM by MadSkillz


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