Congress

Republicans Propose A Constitutional Amendment For Term Limits

Sen. Ted Cruz and Rep. Ron DeSantis have proposed a three-term limit for representatives and a two-term limit for senators.

Republicans Propose A Constitutional Amendment For Term Limits
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Two Republicans  –– Sen. Ted Cruz and Rep. Ron DeSantis –– proposed a constitutional amendment Wednesday that would dramatically reduce term limits for members of Congress.

Under their proposal, U.S. senators would be limited to two terms, and representatives would be limited to three.

That'd make for a 12-year limit for U.S. senators and a six-year limit for U.S. representatives. 

The proposal ties into the "drain the swamp" message President-elect Donald Trump preached during his campaign.

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In October, a Rasmussen poll found 74 percent of voters favored term limits. And in November, roughly 60 new members were voted into Congress.

Cruz said in a press release, "D.C. is broken. The American people resoundingly agreed on Election Day."

But the question is if members of Congress agree. Even powerful Republicans, like Sen. Mitch McConnell, have argued if members of Congress can keep winning elections, it should be their right to.

A lot of famous faces would be out of a job if Cruz and DeSantis' proposal is enacted. McConnell's been in Congress since 1985. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi has been a representative for roughly 30 years.

But looking at Congress as a whole, the proposed term limits may not change much. The average senator serves 10 years, and the average representative serves nine.