The Case for Term Limits

If there is ever a case for Congressional term limits the following is proof.  These are the ten members of Congress with the longest tenure.

John Dingell (D-MI) 58 yrs.
John Conyers (D-MI) 49 yrs.
Charles Rangel (D-NY) 43 yrs.
Thad Cochran (R-MS) 41 yrs.
Don Young (R-AK) 41 yrs.
Patrick Leahy (D-VT) 39 yrs.
Chuck Grassley (R-IA) 39 yrs.
Tom Harkin (D-IA) 39 yrs.
George Miller (D-CA) 39 yrs.
Henry Waxman (D-CA) 39 yrs.

Most other member of Congress have been there longer than 12 years.  Senators are elected for six year terms.  I'm of the opinion 12 years (two terms) is long enough for Senators.  Representatives are elected for two year terms.  I'm of the opinion eight years is long enough for Representatives.  Federal judges, including Supreme Court Judges, are appointed for life.  I'm of the opinion they should be appointed for no longer than 12 year terms.  Amendment XXII of the Constitution limits the President to two four year terms, or eight years.  If the President is limited I can fathom no reason why Members of Congress and Federal Judges should not also be limited.

There is no rational reason for anyone becoming lifetime professional legislators and judges.  Its too easy to become overly comfortable and addicted with the power to spend other peoples money and dictate their lives.  Its too easy to become self serving with few if any restraints.  Its too easy to develop and enhance long term cozy relationships with lobbyists and special interest groups.
It all too often manifests itself as lofty unapproachable arrogance.

All this being said at age 85 I have no aspirations of living long enough to see Congress and the Federal Judiciary bite the humility bullet and rein themselves in.

IRS, Koskinen and Body Language

I watched goodly parts of the testimony by the IRS Commissioner John Koskinen before the House Ways and Means Committee.

I'm no body language expert, but even a novice could tell Mr Koskinen was being anything but forthright in his demeanor, statements, and answers to questions.  First of all, when sworn in and told to raise his right hand and swear to tell the truth and nothing but the truth he held his right hand slightly above waist level palm down.  That in itself was insidious and  had all the appearance of announcing he intended to slide by without revealing anything of substantial truth.  His overall demeanor was one of smug arrogance which came off as a bluff to cover the truth.  His answers obfuscated facts like when he said the IRS had not lost a single email since the start of the committee's investigation.  Well, yes, the committee, and the rest of us, are interested to know what happened to Lois Lerner's emails back in 2010 and 2011, not since the committee launched its investigation last month.  His condescending mannerism as he explained the loss of the emails was about as valid and convincing as the school kid that told his teacher the dog ate his homework.

I would dearly love to see a body language expert's analysis to Mr. Koskinen's appearance before the committee.

Government Amok

Is our government crazily running amok, or what?

Our government deploys several hundred troops to Iraq, a war zone by any measure, to serve as advisers and trainers of the Iraqi army (?), and they are denied hazardous duty pay?

Our government permits, no encourages, mass illegal immigration of Central Americans (with kids in tow) across our Southern Border and sends over $700 million to those countries as a bribe to cure the problem.  Where will that money go?   Right into the pockets of the bureaucrats in Honduras, Guatemala, and San Salvador, and the illegals will keep coming.

Texas is taking on the task at $1.5 million (Texas money) a week to control and secure the Texas southern border.

The Veterans' Administration paid out over $300 million in bonuses to  administrators, yet the VA is in chaos.

We have an IRS that targets the people begging for responsible government, yet can't produce applicable records (emails), but demands that taxpayers keep their financial records 6 years and produce them on demand.

Our government is run amok by incompetent morons, else those in charge have a Saul Alinsky plan to bring our country to its knees begging for a socialistic solution.

Its all bad news!

Iraq. . . . Again?

Today, Obama said he is sending 300 American military advisors to Iraq to advise and train Iraqi soldiers in their fight against the Isis Terrorists.

I have some questions.  If, and at some point they will be, our advisors are confronted by a live fire situation against the Iraq soldiers they are advising, do they: (1) Take up arms and fire back to protect themselves? (2) Flee for their lives? or (3) Surrender to the terrorists?  And, if they fire back, do we, the American military, support them, or do we abandon them?  If they flee, do we militarily intervene to rescue them, or are they on their own?  If they surrender do we militarily engage the terrorists to rescue them, or do we leave them to be beheaded by the terrorists?

I may be naive, but I see no good coming from this.  There is only one way to fight a war. . . to WIN!  Else stay out of the fray.  The way you end a war is. . . we win, they loose.  (Think WW II).  The sending of American military advisors is exactly the way we by mission creep came to be fully involved in Viet Nam.

We have a Comander-in-Chief that has absolutely no understanding of global politics and the meaning of military power and the leverage it provides when dealing with world leaders and tyrants.  He has no understanding of things militarily.  He has a total misunderstanding of why we have a military and how it is employed as an effective tool for peace.  So, he dithers.

Redskins

The U.S. Patent office just invalidated the NFL Washington Redskins trademark.  Just another example of the Obama administration targeting those they oppose without due process.  Moral of this is don't cross Obama or his minions else you'll feel the wrath of the devil himself, Obama.

War and Peace

There is an old Roman saying: "If you want peace prepare for war."

One thing tyrants of the world respect is force, a strong military force.  They view tolerance and compassion as weaknesses to be exploited.  The aim of any person sitting in the Oval Office should be to keep an American military capability so strong that our enemies fear us and our friends respect us.  It is amazing how much more amenable to peaceful solutions our enemies are when they sit staring at the business end of a gun.  But, a strong military is of no consequence when the Commander-in-Chief dithers, can't make a decision, and leads from behind.  National leadership is not without political risks.  So, when our president sees and focuses on every decision through a political prism our adversaries see that as a go signal.  The longer he dithers the more the bad guys exploit.

Obama Usurping Congressional Authority

From yesterday's Mychal Massie's "The Daily Rant."  Well said.

"For We the People, Obama's time in office has thus far been tantamount to a march through hell with the complete deconstruction of America strapped to our backs, and with despair and immiseration clinched in our teeth.  And for the privilege of being unwilling participants in this death march, Obama believes we should be grateful. Obama has usurped and overrun Congressional authority in less time than it took for the Kudzu vine to overrun the South."

I'm Back

For those of you that read my blog I offer my sincere apologies for my extended absence.  My wife has had serious health issues since late April and her care and well being has been my primary concern.  As of late she has improved and I've had time to devote to all the other things I've neglected, including my blog and my readers.  Again, my sincere apology and I shall, depending on my wife's condition, post to my blog from time to time.