The Founding Fathers never intended for Congress to become a retirement home for lifelong politicians. We are watching the same pattern that destroyed every republic in history. The absence of term limits creates a political class. These people cling to power for decades, shaping policy based on their own invisible hand. When someone like Nancy Pelosi can remain in Washington for nearly her entire adult life, accumulating wealth, influence, and control while ordinary Americans struggle under the weight of her legislation, it is undeniable that the system has drifted far from anything resembling representative government.
Career politicians lose touch with reality. They manipulate the system and exempt themselves from the laws they dictate. History shows that once a ruling elite becomes permanent, the republic begins its decline. The people lose representation, confidence collapses, and the political class becomes obsessed with preserving its own privilege rather than serving the nation.
You cannot expect reform from those who depend on the absence of reform to maintain power. I recently attended an event hosted by Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, who voiced her concern for both term-limits and insider trading. Finally, a member of Congress is pushing for legislation that will reshape government by eliminating the permanent ruling class.
A republic cannot survive when those governing have turned public office into a lifetime career. If we want to restore any measure of trust, stability, or accountability, then term limits must be part of the solution. Otherwise, we simply allow the decline to accelerate until the system breaks and the cycle forces the reform that Congress refuses to consider. History warns what happens when elites refuse to step aside.