Pros And Cons Of Term Limits In Congress

Although there is not currently a term limit placed on all members of Congress, the democratic process would greatly benefit from the enactment of an established limit. Serving as a member of Congress should not be idealized as a career choice, rather one should serve with the desire to create a change in policy and dismiss himself when that change is seen through. The pros to instituting a term limit on Congressional members far outweigh the cons because the primary goal of both the House of Representatives and Senate should be to bring positive change to our nation. Without term limits we will continue to be stuck in a mediocre cycle of citizens who are unhappy with their government, but unwilling to do something about it. Some may believe that setting a term limit for Congress is “resorting to an indirect instrument” to voting for the incumbent (Kong-Pin Chen). Incumbency has stained the way that Congress works because, “on average, 96 percent of …show more content…
Long standing members of Congress have had the opportunity to create a network between other politicians and leaders that sometimes aid in the issue of creating or halting new policy. This network develops through an established trust gained because of the consecutive years spent in their position. Members of Congress under no term limit with a favorable chance at incumbency are allowed to gain experience and name recognition because they go through the election process numerous times and serve as a member most usually until death or retirement. Knowing a familiar name can often times sway a voter who assumes that person has been allowed to keep their position because they are benefiting the political process. As an incumbent, there is a certain level of consistency that is associated with a continuous office holder and consistency is usually associated as a positive