Jan. 4 (UPI) — Two Republican members of Congress — Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and Rep. Francis Rooney of Florida — introduced a constitutional amendment Thursday that limits terms in both chambers.
Senators would be held to two six-year terms and House members to three two-year terms, according to the joint resolution.
“For too long, members of Congress have abused their power and ignored the will of the American people,” Cruz said in a statement. “Term limits on members of Congress offer a solution to the brokenness we see in Washington, D.C. It is long past time for Congress to hold itself accountable. I urge my colleagues to submit this constitutional amendment to the states for speedy ratification.”
The Texas senator proposed a similar amendment in January 2017.
Three other Republican senators, Marco Rubio of Florida, Mike Lee of Utah and David Perdue of Georgia, co-sponsored the amendment.
For amendment to be enacted, it needs to be approved by both chambers of Congress by two-thirds as well as three quarters of state legislatures or conventions. The 27th amendment is the most recent one, passed in 1992, that any law that increases or decreases the salary of members of Congress from taking effect until the start of the next set of terms of office for representatives.
Cruz’s Democratic opponent for his Senate seat last November — former Rep. Beto O’Rourke — also called for term limits in Congress. He introduced similar legislation to impose term limits in 2013
“We see that the longer you serve in Congress, the less connected, the less responsive, the less accountable you can become to the people you represent,” O’Rourke said in a column for Medium last May.
President Donald Trump also has supported term limits for members of Congress, posting on Twitter in April that gives his “full sport and endrosement” for efforts by a bipartisan group of freshman legislators.
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