Restructure the House & Senate

[Lumpy 1]

Is it possible, am I just naive, would they allow it, HELL, do they work for Us..?...

It's my contention that the Party Leadership within the House and Senate wields to much power over our Representatives and Senators and needs to be restructured and their powers diminished....

Destroy the Party Power Structure that encourages say, party line voting, so that Senators and Representatives are independent to vote the conscience of their constituents.

It's the way the power structure within the House and Senate (by Democrat & Republican leaders) are wielded against the members that causes them to lose touch with their voters, wants and needs. (lobbyist is another problem)

Say for instance with the Health Care bills, not all the ideas by Republicans or Democrats are bad or good yet Republican ideas are shot down with party line voting and at the same time Democrats are forced to toe the line on the leaderships plan. (one party has to lose)

In politics and in the House and Senate, there are obviously extremes on both sides but the bulk of the Senators and Representatives are arrayed center left & right, they probably come to Washington ready to get down to work for the people then get caught up in the Party Power Structure and we end up forgotten and screwed....

 

[Big Black Dog]

I have a great idea on how to save lots of money within our government. Let's lay off half of the Senators and half of the Representatives. In my judgement, at least half of them aren't worth a damn anyway. Think of all the money we could save. Every other business in America is laying people off. Let's give it a try here.

 

[Lumpy 1]

I have a great idea on how to save lots of money within our government. Let's lay off half of the Senators and half of the Representatives. In my judgement, at least half of them aren't worth a damn anyway. Think of all the money we could save. Every other business in America is laying people off. Let's give it a try here.

Amen to that, let's start with the leadership...

 

[Polk]

Is it possible, am I just naive, would they allow it, HELL, do they work for Us..?...

It's my contention that the Party Leadership within the House and Senate wields to much power over our Representatives and Senators and needs to be restructured and their powers diminished....

Destroy the Party Power Structure that encourages say, party line voting, so that Senators and Representatives are independent to vote the conscience of their constituents.

It's the way the power structure within the House and Senate (by Democrat & Republican leaders) are wielded against the members that causes them to lose touch with their voters, wants and needs. (lobbyist is another problem)

Say for instance with the Health Care bills, not all the ideas by Republicans or Democrats are bad or good yet Republican ideas are shot down with party line voting and at the same time Democrats are forced to toe the line on the leaderships plan. (one party has to lose)

In politics and in the House and Senate, there are obviously extremes on both sides but the bulk of the Senators and Representatives are arrayed center left & right, they probably come to Washington ready to get down to work for the people then get caught up in the Party Power Structure and we end up forgotten and screwed....

If anything, a big problem is a lack of party discipline.

 

[Polk]

I have a great idea on how to save lots of money within our government. Let's lay off half of the Senators and half of the Representatives. In my judgement, at least half of them aren't worth a damn anyway. Think of all the money we could save. Every other business in America is laying people off. Let's give it a try here.

If anything, the House needs to be enlarged.

 

[Oddball]

Is it possible, am I just naive, would they allow it, HELL, do they work for Us..?...

It's my contention that the Party Leadership within the House and Senate wields to much power over our Representatives and Senators and needs to be restructured and their powers diminished....

Destroy the Party Power Structure that encourages say, party line voting, so that Senators and Representatives are independent to vote the conscience of their constituents.

It's the way the power structure within the House and Senate (by Democrat & Republican leaders) are wielded against the members that causes them to lose touch with their voters, wants and needs. (lobbyist is another problem)

Say for instance with the Health Care bills, not all the ideas by Republicans or Democrats are bad or good yet Republican ideas are shot down with party line voting and at the same time Democrats are forced to toe the line on the leaderships plan. (one party has to lose)

In politics and in the House and Senate, there are obviously extremes on both sides but the bulk of the Senators and Representatives are arrayed center left & right, they probably come to Washington ready to get down to work for the people then get caught up in the Party Power Structure and we end up forgotten and screwed....

Repeal the 17th Amendment.

Problem solved.

Really.

 

[Xenophon]

Is it possible, am I just naive, would they allow it, HELL, do they work for Us..?...

It's my contention that the Party Leadership within the House and Senate wields to much power over our Representatives and Senators and needs to be restructured and their powers diminished....

Destroy the Party Power Structure that encourages say, party line voting, so that Senators and Representatives are independent to vote the conscience of their constituents.

It's the way the power structure within the House and Senate (by Democrat & Republican leaders) are wielded against the members that causes them to lose touch with their voters, wants and needs. (lobbyist is another problem)

Say for instance with the Health Care bills, not all the ideas by Republicans or Democrats are bad or good yet Republican ideas are shot down with party line voting and at the same time Democrats are forced to toe the line on the leaderships plan. (one party has to lose)

In politics and in the House and Senate, there are obviously extremes on both sides but the bulk of the Senators and Representatives are arrayed center left & right, they probably come to Washington ready to get down to work for the people then get caught up in the Party Power Structure and we end up forgotten and screwed....

Repeal the 17th Amendment.

Problem solved.

Really.

My dream of no political parties will happen before you see these goobers do that.

 

[Avatar4321]

My dream of no political parties will happen before you see these goobers do that.

Take them out of the equation. Have the states call a Constitutional Convention.

 

[Kevin_Kennedy]

Is it possible, am I just naive, would they allow it, HELL, do they work for Us..?...

It's my contention that the Party Leadership within the House and Senate wields to much power over our Representatives and Senators and needs to be restructured and their powers diminished....

Destroy the Party Power Structure that encourages say, party line voting, so that Senators and Representatives are independent to vote the conscience of their constituents.

It's the way the power structure within the House and Senate (by Democrat & Republican leaders) are wielded against the members that causes them to lose touch with their voters, wants and needs. (lobbyist is another problem)

Say for instance with the Health Care bills, not all the ideas by Republicans or Democrats are bad or good yet Republican ideas are shot down with party line voting and at the same time Democrats are forced to toe the line on the leaderships plan. (one party has to lose)

In politics and in the House and Senate, there are obviously extremes on both sides but the bulk of the Senators and Representatives are arrayed center left & right, they probably come to Washington ready to get down to work for the people then get caught up in the Party Power Structure and we end up forgotten and screwed....

Repeal the 17th Amendment.

Problem solved.

Really.

Not all the problems, but that's a big step in the right direction.

 

[KittenKoder]

We need to restructure our entire government at this rate.

 

[RetiredGySgt]

I have a great idea on how to save lots of money within our government. Let's lay off half of the Senators and half of the Representatives. In my judgement, at least half of them aren't worth a damn anyway. Think of all the money we could save. Every other business in America is laying people off. Let's give it a try here.

If anything, the House needs to be enlarged.

Currently we 435 Representatives for about 300 million people. They are quickly approaching the point where one Representative represents 1 million people.

At the very least establish that 500 thousand is the max number for a Representative. Originally it was 30 thousand. That would give us about 600 Representatives.

 

[RetiredGySgt]

My dream of no political parties will happen before you see these goobers do that.

Take them out of the equation. Have the states call a Constitutional Convention.

You do NOT want that, such a convention could scrape the Constitution completely and write something totally new.

 

[Avatar4321]

You do NOT want that, such a convention could scrape the Constitution completely and write something totally new.

How is that any different than what we have now, really?

 

[RetiredGySgt]

You do NOT want that, such a convention could scrape the Constitution completely and write something totally new.

How is that any different than what we have now, really?

We have written protections and most are observed. If they toss it out we have nothing except what they then create. The problem is only in the Congress and its abuse of power, well the Courts as well. The basic document is fine, We need new amendments to rein in all the ignorant power grabbing that has occurred over the last 150 years.

We need to be clear on the fact Judges can NOT create law with removal if they do mandated. We need specific articles to stop the abuse of the Congress in regards the power they have and do not have.

One way would be a requirement that ANY bill include the SPECIFIC clause in the Constitution that authorizes it. That should start the bill off, a specific section that details what clause applies and why. No more claiming education is some how a commerce clause covered power.

The commerce clause is the most abused of the lot.

When the bill is passed and signed it must start with that section detailing why it is Constitutional.

Further we need an amendment to remove any doubt that there is any such thing as "general welfare" power given to Congress. That only those clauses LISTED as powers, not the preamble to those clauses, are the powers granted to Congress.

And to avoid future idiocy with eligibility for President and Vice President a specific clause that STATES what proves their eligibility. With authority for the PEOPLE to see those documents.

We need to repel the amendment that limits Congress to 435 House members and replace it with a set number of people that qualify a State to have a representative. As was originally done in the Constitution.

That is for starters. I do not want to see the first 10 amendments eliminated by a Constitutional Congress gone stupid. Nor do I want idiotic racial preferences or standing added. No gay amendment either.

 

[Lumpy 1]

Is it possible, am I just naive, would they allow it, HELL, do they work for Us..?...

It's my contention that the Party Leadership within the House and Senate wields to much power over our Representatives and Senators and needs to be restructured and their powers diminished....

Destroy the Party Power Structure that encourages say, party line voting, so that Senators and Representatives are independent to vote the conscience of their constituents.

It's the way the power structure within the House and Senate (by Democrat & Republican leaders) are wielded against the members that causes them to lose touch with their voters, wants and needs. (lobbyist is another problem)

Say for instance with the Health Care bills, not all the ideas by Republicans or Democrats are bad or good yet Republican ideas are shot down with party line voting and at the same time Democrats are forced to toe the line on the leaderships plan. (one party has to lose)

In politics and in the House and Senate, there are obviously extremes on both sides but the bulk of the Senators and Representatives are arrayed center left & right, they probably come to Washington ready to get down to work for the people then get caught up in the Party Power Structure and we end up forgotten and screwed....

Repeal the 17th Amendment.

Problem solved.

Really.

Maybe so, but what can be done in the mean time..

The BS is up to chin level..

 

[Polk]

I have a great idea on how to save lots of money within our government. Let's lay off half of the Senators and half of the Representatives. In my judgement, at least half of them aren't worth a damn anyway. Think of all the money we could save. Every other business in America is laying people off. Let's give it a try here.

If anything, the House needs to be enlarged.

Currently we 435 Representatives for about 300 million people. They are quickly approaching the point where one Representative represents 1 million people.

At the very least establish that 500 thousand is the max number for a Representative. Originally it was 30 thousand. That would give us about 600 Representatives.

I agree.

 

[JakeStarkey]

Some very interesting comments from posters. If you free the elected representatives from party obligations, then you will open them completely to corporatist bribery in the interest of lobbyism. That would create a corporatist dictatorship behind a facade of democratic republicanism.

 

[manifold]

Repeal the 17th Amendment.

Problem solved.

Really.

What makes you believe that would even be an improvement, let alone a complete solution?

 

[Oddball]

Repeal the 17th Amendment.

Problem solved.

Really.

What makes you believe that would even be an improvement, let alone a complete solution?

Because the Senate, as appointees of the state houses, were the check and balance on federal budgets.

Since apportionment of taxes made the states the tax collectors, there was strong resistance in the Senate for expanding bureaucracy and profligate spending.