CITIZEN LEGISLATORS More Self-Limiters Keep Their Word in 2002 · Web Site Sees Record Usage In the days surrounding the 2000 elections, the U.S. Term Limits web site set one usage

1January 2001 Issue No Uncertain TERMS � U.S. Term Limits10 G St., NE � Washington, DC 20002 � http://www.ustermlimits.org

CITIZEN LEGISLATORS

More Self-Limiters Keep Their Word in 2002Six members of Congress who pledged

to limit their time in office are begin-ning their final term. Scheduled to leaveoffice in 2002 are Reps. John Baldacci(D-ME), John Cooksey (R-LA), DanMiller (R-FL), John Thune (R-SD),Ron Lewis (R-KY), and Bob Schaffer(R-CO).

Baldacci, Cooksey, Miller and Thunehave all reconfirmed their pre-electionpledges at this early stage.

According to a Aug. 8 article in theYankton Press and Dakotan, Thunesaid, �I�ve had a lot of people come upto me and tell me to forget that I saidI would only serve three terms but Ijust can�t do that. . . . In my mind,

that is not an acceptable course ofaction. I believe you have to say whatyou mean and mean what you say.�

A seventh congressman who pledged toleave in 2002, Rep. Rick Hill (R-MT),has decided to leave office earlier thanhe originally planned. He�s stepping downafter the current session ends.

They will join the ranks of the citi-zen legislators who are leaving officeat the end of this term, thanks to simi-lar pledges � Reps. Matt Salmon (R-AZ), Tom Coburn (R-OK), MarkSanford (R-SC), Charles T. Canady (R-FL), Jack Metcalf (R-WA), HelenChenoweth-Hage (R-ID), and TillieFowler (R-FL).

INTERACTIVITY

Web Site Sees Record UsageIn the days surrounding the

2000 elections, the U.S. TermLimits web site set one usagerecord after another as web surf-ers logged on to check for newsof how term limits fared acrossthe nation. The site�s highest-traf-fic day, November 8, surpassedthe previous record (set on No-vember 7) by over 39 percent.

Of course, we had good newsto report, with Nebraska joiningeighteen other states with term-limited legislatures, measures

overwhelmingly passed in Cali-fornia, Florida, Maryland andNew Mexico limiting locally-elected officials, three new self-limited congressional candidateselected to Congress, and a uni-versal rejection of professionalpoliticians� attempts to repealterm limits.

Visit www.termlimits.org fre-quently in the coming year aswe update the site with new in-formation, news, features andinteractivity.

I N S I D E

Committee Chair Limits� page 2

Time Runs Out� page 2

Newcomers� page 3

Anything Can Happen� page 5

Term Limits & Diversity� page 7

Committee Chair Limits� page 2

Time Runs Out� page 2

Newcomers� page 3

Anything Can Happen� page 5

Term Limits & Diversity� page 7

I N S I D E

January 2001 � VOLUME 9 � NUMBER 1

The Newsletter of theTerm Limits Movement

Rep. John Thune(R-SD) recently reconfirmed

his self-limit pledge

2 January 2001 IssueNo Uncertain TERMS � U.S. Term Limits10 G St., NE � Washington, DC 20002 � http://www.ustermlimits.org

MESSAGE FROM THE NATIONAL DIRECTOR

Factions UnboundRecently I talked about how

one of our Founding Fathers,James Madison, diagnosed theproblem of special interests longbefore they became the kind of

headache they are today. Madison knew how thesugar lobby would behave before there was a sugarlobby.

We say special interest. Madison�s word was faction.There are two ways to try to control �the violence of

faction,� Madison explained. One is to limit the causesof faction. But you can�t stop people from havingdifferent opinions and interests and we must neverstop people from expressing or acting upon thoseopinions and interests. Sadly, that�s what some proposalsfor Campaign Finance Reform threaten to do.

Liberty is to faction what air is to fire, said Madison.You can�t save freedom by destroying freedom. So

instead of trying to limit the causes of special interests,we should try to limit the effects.

Madison thought the Republican principlesenshrined in the Constitution would go far to �securethe public good and private rights� against thedangerous effects of faction. He was right. But he didn�trealize how strong a faction politicians themselves wouldbecome, thanks to their virtually limitless hold on power.

The Founding Fathers thought about making termlimits a part of the Constitution, but few people desireda political career back then. So in the end they decidedit wasn�t necessary. Big mistake, as Jefferson realizedat the time.

Not one that�s too late to correct, though.

JANUARY 2001 � VOLUME 9 � NUMBER 1

Edited by Eric D. Dixon

A Publication ofU.S. TERM LIMITS and

U.S. TERM LIMITS FOUNDATION

10 G ST., NE, SUITE 410WASHINGTON, D.C. 20002

1-800-733-6440

No Uncertain Terms is published 12times a year at an annual subscriptionprice of $30. Third class postage paid,Washington, D.C. POSTMASTER: Sendaddress changes to U.S. Term Limits.

Term Limits On-Line!For the latest developments on term

limits across America, visit our web siteon the Internet at

www.ustermlimits.org

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Peter Ackerman Travis AndersonSteven Baer Terence ConsidineEdward Crane Cora FieldsMike Ford M. Blair HullSally Reed Impastato Paul JacobKenneth Langone Ronald LauderRob Mosbacher Paul RaynaultHoward Rich Joseph StilwellDonna Weaver Bill Wilson

ROTATION OF POWER

Term Limits on Committee Chairs to RemainTerm limits on committee chairmen

in the House of Representatives aresafe. On November 15 the Republi-can majority decided to keep the six-year limit intact. �As a result, some ofthe most powerful lawmakers in theHouse will have to give up their postswhen the next Congress convenes inJaunary,� the Associated Press wrote.

Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL)�called the rule a disincentive for term-limited chairmen to stay in the House,and was a primary reason some chair-

men decided not to seek re-election,�according to the Associated Press re-port.

The Washington Times opined, �TheRepublican leadership in the Housebelieved that a promise made shouldbe a promise kept, and they have heldto the mainsail of commitment in spiteof the stormy congressional sessionthat lies ahead. In doing so, they havedemonstrated that they are a party ofprinciple and law.�

Indeed, although term limits on com-

mittee chairmen seems to be a bipar-tisan issue in Congress. Last April,House minority leader RichardGephardt (D-MO) said he was pre-pared to keep the limits in place if theDemocrats regained the majority.

USTL�s National Director, PaulJacob, said, �While the term limitsmovement takes no position on whichparty we prefer to see in the majority,we are very pleased that regardless ofwho is in control, term limits on com-mittee chairmen are here to stay.�


SHAKING THINGS UP IN MICHIGAN

Time Runs Out For LegislatorsBy Kathleen Gray

This week, [21] staterepresentatives willleave their seats in

Lansing, forced out ofoffice by term limits.Approved by voters in

1992, term limits allowstate House membersto serve three 2-yearterms, while senators

and the statewideelected offices of

governor, attorneygeneral and secretaryof state can serve two

5-year terms.

State Rep. Hubert Price couldn�t open the drawerof his desk in the state Capitol.

�This is the third time I�ve asked to have this drawerfixed,� the Democrat from Pontiac said to anyone whowould listen.

�I don�t have much time left,you know, and I want it fixedbefore I leave.�

His half-joking tirade wasborne out of frustration.

This week, he and 20 otherstate representatives willleave their seats in Lansing,forced out of office by termlimits.

Approved by voters in 1992,term limits allow state Housemembers to serve three 2-yearterms, while senators and thestatewide elected offices ofgovernor, attorney general andsecretary of state can servetwo 5-year terms.

And for people who havededicated much of their pro-fessional lives to elected pub-lic service, the transition ischallenging.

�I�m only 54. I�m still ayoung man,� said Price, whoserved for 17 years on theOakland County Board ofCommissioners before beingelected to the state House ina 1993 special election. �Ilook at this as merely a hia-tus because I�d like to think I can still make somecontribution.�

But for at least the next two years, it will have to bein the private sector.

Price has created a company, tentatively calledSynergistics Consulting, to follow up on one of his pas-sions in the Legislature � strategic workforce devel-opment training. He plans to line up clients, such as

colleges and private industry, to develop training pro-grams in areas where workers are needed, such ascomputer-aided drafting and Web page design.

He concentrated in that area as a member of theHouse Appropriations Com-mittee, trying to get money fortraining people who were go-ing from welfare to work. Dur-ing his term, Price was instru-mental in getting $2.2 mil-lion in state funds to start anadvanced training program atOakland Community Collegethat trained poor residents forcomputer jobs at EDS andKelly Services.

For state Rep. Terry Gei-ger, R-Lake Odessa, the chal-lenge is staying in the publiceye for the next two yearswhile he waits to run for thestate Senate seat now held bythe term-limited Sen. JoanneEmmons, R-Big Rapids.

Geiger said he will stay ac-tive in party politics, both onthe local and state level. Heis hoping to use his chairman-ship of the AppropriationsCommittee, which helps craftthe state�s $37-billion bud-get, to land a job with the ad-ministration, perhaps with thestate�s Department of Manage-ment and Budget.

For Rep. Paul Tesanovich,D-L�Anse, it�s not too hard to keep his name in thepublic�s mind.

�My name isn�t one that people generally forget,�he said, explaining that his name is an unusual oneand that it is well-known in the Upper Peninsula.

�But by the same token, my opinions aren�t as news-worthy when I�m not in the seat.�

�Excerpted from the Detroit Free Press


FRESH FACES IN CALIFORNIA

Newcomers to the LegislatureThe Los Angeles Times

Under term limits,observes sophomore

AssemblymanDarrell Steinberg(D-Sacramento),

�it�s not as if memberscan afford to sit on theback bench and waittheir turn. They�re

expected to get righton in there.�

It�s back to school day in the Capitol�actually, thefirst day of school for 28 new legislators.

The buzzer sounds for a new two-year legislativesession. But the institution�s not what it used to be.The main reason is term limits.

Better because rapid turnover has generated morediversity. There will be 27 Latinos among the 119lawmakers sworn in, accord-ing to the Associated Press.There were only seven in1990 when California votersimposed term limits. There�llbe 34 women; in 1990, therewere just 18. Credit thewomen with assuring passageof school reform.

Worse because institutionalmemory is almost gone exceptfor a handful of veterans. Newlawmakers now don�t haveenough time to acquire policyexpertise or the power to re-ally lead.

The position�s also less de-sirous. The stipend�s OK�$99,000 annually; $113,850for a house leader. Plusthere�s a daily $121 tax-freeexpense check. But votershave refused a pension planfor all lawmakers elected after 1990.

And no matter how competent they are, Assemblymembers get booted after six years; senators after eight.So there�s a distracting game of musical chairs, a per-petual plotting toward the next political post.

Today, however, is about assigning desks, taking oathsand reconfirming leaders. After warm handshakes andhugs, the lawmakers will recess until Jan. 3. Then,presumably, they�ll begin dealing with such dilemmasas electricity rate rip-offs and how to spend anothermultibillion-dollar tax surplus.

But don�t minimize the importance of this day forthe 28 freshmen, all elected to the Assembly. (Thereactually are 31 new Assembly members, but three haveprevious legislative experience. And 10 new senatorshave shuffled over from the Assembly.)

Assemblyman Abel Mal-donado (R-Santa Maria) re-members his first swearing-in two years ago:

�I was overwhelmed�a young Hispanic from a familythat once had nothing, there in the big state Capitol.My father was an immigrant bracero irrigator. To havehis son sworn in 35 years later as a state represen-tative, I gotta tell you, it was the best day of my life.

We both had tears in oureyes. This is a man who hasa sticker on his truck: �Bro-ken English Spoken Per-fectly.��

Maldonado, 33, had anotherbig day last summer when hespoke in Spanish to the Re-publican National Conven-tion in prime time.

His advice to freshmen:�Don�t forget where you camefrom.�

I also asked other legislatorswhat advice they�d give fresh-men.

�Keep your mouth shut,�suggests Assembly SpeakerBob Hertzberg (D- ShermanOaks). �Don�t get out thereand offer your opinion onevery issue. Listen. Do yourhomework and do it again.�

Spoken like a leader who doesn�t enjoy back-talk.Under term limits, observes sophomore Assembly-

man Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento), �it�s not asif members can afford to sit on the back bench andwait their turn. They�re expected to get right on inthere.�

�My advice,� he adds, �is focus, focus, focus. The keyis to find issues that have not received real politicalprominence, but need leadership. That�s where youcan really make an impact.�

Second-term Assemblyman Herb Wesson (D-Cul-ver City) cautions: �These guys should never fall inlove with their bills.� Measures often are butchered,he notes, and authors shouldn�t take it personally. Com-promise.

Excerpted from the Los Angeles Times


incumbent went the way of virtually all such challenges:he lost.

Then Florida�s term limits law took effect and all thatchanged. Suddenly there were more candidates runningthen you could shake a stick at. Brutus sought an openseat where there was no entrenched incumbent and hewon � becoming the first Haitian-American elected toFlorida�s Legislature.

When incumbents can no longer monopolize our politics,voters get real choices and anything can happen. Oureconomy has long been open to those who work hardestand best serve their customers.

Shouldn�t our political process work this way, too? Withterm limits it does.

Does your local radio station carry COMMON SENSE?If not, ask them to call 1-800-733-6440 for a FREE subscription.Provided to radio stations three times a week.

COMMON

SENSEby Paul Jacob

America is a placewhere if you work hard

enough anything you can dream canhappen. Well, thanks in part to term limits.

Take the story of Phillip Brutus. Many years ago thisHaitian immigrant was a part-time janitor at a lawfirm. While emptying the trash one day, he overheard thesenior partner quizzing junior lawyers on Latin legalterms. When the junior lawyers were stumped, Brutusspoke up with the correct answer.

In that room full of raised eyebrows and jaws droppedwide open, he decided to become a lawyer. After years ofpoverty and sacrifice, Brutus earned his law degree andopened up a practice.

Then he dreamed of serving his community in thestate legislature. In Florida, incumbency effectively blockednew people. Most incumbent legislators didn�t face anycompetition at all. Phillip�s challenge of a powerful

THE WEEKLY RADIO COMMENTARY OFTHE U.S. TERM LIMITS FOUNDATION

Anything Can Happen


Score one for term limits. The rapidturnover in the Legislature bringsfresh faces and fresh troops, eageronce more to roll the rock up the hill.

�San Diego Union TribuneDecember 11, 2000

THEY SAID IT

Those who are worried about bureau-crats and lobbyists taking control ofthe State House because more legis-lators are relatively new should con-sider that the opposite just might betrue. Fresh blood has had less time tobuild up the cosy chumships thatgrease wheels. And new faces may bemore likely to look for new solutions,rather than settle for the �that�s theway we�ve always done it� sledgeham-mer that oldtimers use to squash rookieenthusiasms.

�Portland (Maine) Press HeraldDecember 11, 2000

[W]ith the emergence of term limits that al-low state representatives to serve only threetwo-year terms, House members can�t affordto sit on the sidelines if they want to have ameaningful role in legislative proceedings,[Arkansas State Rep. Steve] Schall said.

�Arkansas Democrat GazetteDecember 6, 2000

Term Limits Score

New Faces BringNew Solutions

Participation Essential

Next year, more thanone-third of the 65lawmakers in the[Colorado] Housewill be new. The vet-eran lawmakers inthe House have sixyears� experience.Before term limits,lawmakers oftenserved several de-cades.

�Rocky MountainNews (Colorado)

November 30, 2000

VeteransNo More

The Nov. 7 election was the first in whichthe full effect of [Florida�s] term limits,passed in the early 1990s, has taken hold.As a result, 75 members of the 160-mem-ber Florida legislature are new to their jobs,and their first task will be to meet in thenational spotlight.

�BloombergDecember 1, 2000

The Nation is Watching The new six-year limit [on Housecommittee chairmen] has created anatmosphere in which seniority is not asvalued as it once was, and geography,legislative accomplishments, andfundraising prowess are becomingincreasingly important.

�Bergen Record (New Jersey)November 15, 2000

New Focus on Quality

[New York City Council SpeakerPeter] Vallone said �it�s political

suicide� to try to lift or revise termlimits. . . . When asked about a

possible revolt by Council membersslated to get the boot in 2001,Vallone said, �There is none.�

�New York Daily NewsNovember 15, 2000


A Testament to PrincipleExcerpts from Rep. Mark Sanford�s new book:

The Trust Committed to Me

A well documented but little discussed study by theNational Taxpayers Union showed that regardlessof party, the longer a person is in office, the greaterhis tendency to spend the tazpayers� money. It�s notthat representatives become evil people � just thatthey�re human. Basic biology teaches how remark-ably adaptable human beings are to the world aroundus. Unfortunately, Washington is a place where largesums of money become rounding errors. Over time,congressmen become accustomed to the large sumsand the inevitable rounding errors that are part andparcel of the political process. And while being inWashington may change the lawmaker�s perspec-tive, what it doesn�t change is how hard folks athome must work to send that same money to CapitolHill. For me this always meant less is more when itcomes to term limits. The fewer the number of yearsin office, the less time to grow accustomed to the ideathat $50 million is a rounding error.

It�s . . . wrong-headed to believe that a self-limiter can�t influence Congress as a whole. Infact, what Congress most needs is leadership, andthis comes only with the independence of know-ing that politics isn�t your career. In the sum-mer of 1999, Tom Coburn of Oklahoma gummedup the works on several appropriation bills be-cause the spending course we were on entailedrobbing money from Social Security. He thoughtit dishonest for Congress to pledge not to touchSocial Security money, and then proceed on apath that would guarantee the opposite.

The supposedly powerful committee chairmenwere going with the flow along with everyoneelse. They�d rather play along with the charadethan jeopardize their chairmanships. With a fewexceptions, committee chairmen vote in lockstepwith leadership not necessarily because they likea budget or bill but because they feel they haveto. But a citizen legislator like Tom Coburndoesn�t feel he has to go along to get along. He�sfree to act on his conscience and fight for what isright. Tom did what the folks back home so oftenurge us to do: please stand up for the principlesthat took you to Washington. Staying true to thoseideals is much more important to the people ofmy district than the federal money. It meansthat you�re justifying their trust.

[T]he American people managed towage a war of independence, erect aradical new form of government, andweather the storms of financial panic,civil war, depression, and indus-trialization, all without the divinelyinspired vision of professionalpoliticians. American was a countryfounded by political amateurs.

If self-limits do nothing else, they afforda legislator the freedom to stand upfor what he believes. If any of us hadharbored dreams of a long Housecareer, or craved the title Mr.Chairman, none of us would have votedagainst a rule on legislation that theparty leaders wanted. Such a votewould have doomed us to thebackbench for decades.

Order Rep. Sanford�s illuminating book today!

1 copy: $9.955 copies: $2510 copies: $40

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He�s a conservative Republican who strongly supportsthe concept of term limits. His three terms ended in theAssembly this year and he�s glad to be done with theCapitol.

In fact, former Assemblyman Steve Baldwin of El Cajonjokes that he�d only return to Sacramento under courtorder.

Still, Baldwin believes that term limits should be ex-tended from the six years allowed in the Assembly to 10.Term limits allow state senators to serve eight years.

�You�re not there long enough to become an expertin any one area,� Baldwin said. �When I look at mycolleagues, staff people are constantly whispering intotheir ear because they don�t know enough about thesubject.�

Baldwin�s support shows how broad the consensus isamong lawmakers for lengthening terms, with conservativeRepublicans joining Democrats in the cry to extend theterms. There�s only one problem with this view: The pub-lic doesn�t buy it.

Numerous polls show strong public support for the termlimits. Lawmakers feared these polls earlier this year whenthey rejected a proposed ballot measure to extend terms to12 years in each house.

In November, voters showed their support by rejectingProposition 33, a measure by legislators to restore theretirement benefits the term limits initiative took away.�It underscores a position I came to last year: The Legis-lature can�t change term limits,� said state Sen. DonPerata, D-Oakland. �It would seem too self-serving.�

Supporters say term limits have loosened the iron gripthat former Speaker Willie Brown held over the Assem-bly, elected a diverse new group of lawmakers and endedthe embarrassing string of corrupt legislators who endedtheir careers in federal prison.

Ironically, term limits, which were aimed at ending therule of one minority member � Brown, an African-Ameri-can � brought far more minorities and women into theLegislature.

In the 10 years since term limits were passed, the num-ber of women in the Assembly has grown from 13 to 25,the number of Latinos from four to 25 and the number ofAsian-Americans from zero to three.

Supporters can also point out that there�s been no legis-lative crisis since term limits took full effect in 1996.

In part that�s because of people like Assembly SpeakerBob Hertzberg, D-Van Nuys. Two years ago Hertzberg setup a training institute for freshmen that already has helpedall the new members being sworn in today to learn howto be a legislator. Last year, Hertzberg won election to thespeakership with rare bipartisan support.

By running the lower house so smoothly, Hertzberg isundermining the political case for change. With no crisis,supporters of an extension, including Hertzberg, are lim-ited to subtle arguments about the growing power of lob-byists and staff.

Those arguments might persuade students in a politicalscience class, but their appeal to the public is bound to havestrict limits.

Excerpted from the San Diego Union Tribune

THE LAST WORD

Diversity Through Term Limitsby Bill Ainsworth

Documents

CITIZEN LEGISLATORS More Self-Limiters Keep Their Word in 2002 · Web Site Sees Record Usage In the days surrounding the 2000 elections, the U.S. Term Limits web site set one usage