It was another frustrating week for Congress as a spending bill was passed that avoided a government shutdown but postponed our fiscal problems until March. According to Bradley Jay of Breitbart, the bill extended “spending levels and policy priorities negotiated in February and March 2024 with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and President Joe Biden.”
Democrats voted for the bill unanimously, while 34 Republicans voted against the measure. This bill was the latest disappointment from House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), who folded throughout the year on issues of importance to the millions of Make America Great Again (MAGA) advocates and supporters of President Donald Trump as well as the conservative members of the Republican congressional delegation.
Johnson and his defenders claim that he was forced to negotiate with Democrats because the GOP majority is so slim. One of the reasons for the extremely tight margin is U.S. Congresswoman Kay Granger, the Republican member from the 12th district in Texas, has not voted on any bills since July 24.
It was just uncovered by the Dallas Express that Granger has been in an “assisted living facility” for months. The newspaper also discovered that she moved into the home after she was “found wandering lost and confused in her former Cultural District/West 7th neighborhood.” The Dallas Express investigation also determined that her district office was unoccupied, and phone calls were sent “directly to voicemail.”
As Tarrant County Republican Chairman Bo French stated to the Dallas Express, “The lack of representation for CD-12 is troubling to say the least. At a time when extraordinarily important votes are happening, including debt ceiling, disaster relief, farm bills and border issues, Kay Granger is nowhere to be found. The margin in Congress is razor thin and the lack of a Republican vote representing CD-12 disenfranchises two million people. We deserve better.”
You are right Mr. French, but this is only the latest humiliating episode to occur this year to members of Congress. U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) sprained his wrist and sustained facial cuts after a fall at the U.S. Capitol. Last year, he famously “froze” in numerous press conferences.
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) just fractured her hip tripping down a stairwell during her recent trip to Europe. She was flown to a U.S. military hospital in Germany for hip replacement surgery.
All these individuals are octogenarians who have been in the U.S. Congress for decades. Granger is 81 years old and was first elected to the House in 1997. Pelosi is 84 years old and was first elected to the House in 1987. McConnell is 81 years old and was first elected to the Senate in 1984.
These members are young compared to even older congressional colleagues. U.S. Representative Maxine Waters (D-CA) is 86 years old and was just elected to another term in office. Even older is U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA), who was first elected in 1981 and is 90 years old. Grassley is the oldest member of the Congress after the late U.S. Senator Diane Feinstein (D-CA) died in 2023, at the age of 90, after serving in Congress for 31 years.
These examples are both sad and infuriating. Members of Congress should not be allowed to serve if they are physically or mentally unfit to perform their duties. Additionally, members must not be allowed to stay in their offices for decades. This situation is unfair to the American people because after decades in office most members of Congress stop serving their constituents and only serve the special interests, the lobbyists, and the bureaucrats.
The problems in Congress are undoubtedly widespread. After Congresswoman Granger’s whereabouts were reported, U.S. Representative Thomas Massive (R-KY) posted on social media that he was “more concerned about the congressmen who have dementia and are still voting.” As former South Carolina Governor and GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley stated, Congress has become “the most privileged nursing home” in the country.
The American people deserve better. Obviously, there are dozens of members of Congress who are past their prime and should retire. Unfortunately, if they run for re-election, it is almost impossible to defeat them. The re-election rate for an incumbent member of Congress in 2024 was an astounding 98.5%. The incumbents defeat challengers because they have advantages in fundraising and name recognition.
Therefore, the only way change will come to Congress is through term limits. It is exceedingly popular with the American people. In a 2023 poll by Pew Research Center, 87% of respondents indicated their support for congressional term limits.
This issue is nothing new. In fact, it is as old as our constitutional republic. While The Constitution mentions the length of congressional terms and the minimum age requirements for the House and Senate members, and not term limits, the idea was debated by the Founding Fathers at the Constitutional Convention in 1787.
It was favored in the Virginia Plan offered by James Madison. In the Federalist Papers, No. 53, also authored by James Madison, he wrote that long serving members of Congress may become “masters of the public business, and perhaps not unwilling to avail themselves of those advantages.”
Madison was right and so are the American people, unfortunately Congress stubbornly refuses to act. While the U.S. Constitution has only been amended 27 times and the last amendment passed in 1992, it is long overdue for a 28th constitutional amendment focused on congressional term limits.
The path toward a constitutional amendment is not easy, either a two-thirds congressional vote, or a constitutional convention called by thirty-four states, followed by ratification by thirty-eight states.
The only way either method will succeed is through intense pressure from the American people. Hopefully, it will be an issue championed by President Trump. In 2018, he expressed his “full support and endorsement” for congressional term limits. With his backing, it can start to gain traction again in 2025.
If enacted, it will be one of the most consequential reforms in American history.
Jeff Crouere is a native New Orleanian and his award-winning program, “Ringside Politics,” airs Saturdays from Noon until 1 p.m. CT nationally on Real America's Voice TV Network & AmericasVoice.News and weekdays from 7-9 a.m. & 6-7 p.m. CT on WGSO 990-AM & Wgso.com. He is a political columnist, the author of America's Last Chance and provides regular commentaries on the Jeff Crouere YouTube channel and on Crouere.net. For more information, email him at jcrouere@gmail.com
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