why do we keep re-electing them?

[eliza61]

I just returned from my annual check up and while waiting at the doctors office, I was reading an old edition of readers digest. It was from August '08. The article said that our officials enjoy a 90% re-election rate. Which pretty much means once they get elected, they seem to stay forever?

If we are so dissatisfied with the way Congress is acting why the heck do we keep re-electing them? There's got to be some phsycological explanation for it?

 

[SwedishMeatball]

I think because as much as people detest it, we know that the longer they are in office, the more power and influence they are able to wield to achieve all those campaign promises made to their constituents.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Same reason we check off judges we don't know when we go to the general election.

You have to actively get involved in your community, state, county, to find out what these people are doing in their position.

Life gets busy and we get tired of it.

I say kick all the men out.

 

[Uncle Remus]

Same reason we check off judges we don't know when we go to the general election.

You have to actively get involved in your community, state, county, to find out what these people are doing in their position.

Life gets busy and we get tired of it.

I say kick all the men out.

Hey, that might be a good idea.

 

[Cheshire Figment]

There is an old story about a rural county where there was a young person running against a long-time incumbent for Commissioner of Roads.

At a public debate, the youngster talked about how the current Commissioner had made sure that the roads out where he lived were paved, and that this was a real waste of money and also personal gain because of the good road. As rebuttal, the incumbent said: "I already have my roads, he does not".

Obviously the incumbents already have their graft, the newcomers don't have any.

And a final comment, An honest politician is one that stays bought.

 

[Master Mason]

Because we tend to hate congress but love our congressmen. That's the problem with electing a national office on a local basis.

 

[Mr Man]

Cynicism of the voting public and the overwhelming power of incumbency.

Hard to compete when noone really cares what you have to say (too busy watching American Idol) & the incumbent has the vast majority of media coverage & access to public policy.

I am for term limits. I always have been. I hope the sad joke that is the 111th Congress pushes us in the direction of limiting the lasting power of a few.

 

[Cool-Beans]

Everyone hates congress, but they all love their congressman.

 

[Uncle Remus]

Everyone hates congress, but they all love their congressman.

I didn't like mine when Texas gerrymandered the districts and I ended up in Dick Armey's.

 

[GeorgeG]

A friend of mine has a policy of never voting for an incumbant. I think for most of us it comes down to who we consider the lesser of two evils.

We really need to start all our elected officials accountable for everything they do. We tend to forget that they work for us.

 

[Uncle Remus]

A friend of mine has a policy of never voting for an incumbant. I think for most of us it comes down to who we consider the lesser of two evils.

We really need to start all our elected officials accountable for everything they do. We tend to forget that they work for us.

Absolutely!!!

 

[moburg]

I just returned from my annual check up and while waiting at the doctors office, I was reading an old edition of readers digest. It was from August '08. The article said that our officials enjoy a 90% re-election rate. Which pretty much means once they get elected, they seem to stay forever?

If we are so dissatisfied with the way Congress is acting why the heck do we keep re-electing them? There's got to be some phsycological explanation for it?

Everybody hates Congress (9% approval rating), but they like their own Reps.

 

[SorcererDonald16]

I just returned from my annual check up and while waiting at the doctors office, I was reading an old edition of readers digest. It was from August '08. The article said that our officials enjoy a 90% re-election rate. Which pretty much means once they get elected, they seem to stay forever?

If we are so dissatisfied with the way Congress is acting why the heck do we keep re-electing them? There's got to be some phsycological explanation for it?

This is something I get frustrated with a lot. I've said on this board multiple times that anywhere between 85-95% of the people in Washington need to be booted out the door and back to wherever they came from. Some of them start out really wanting to help, and they eventually end up sucked into the land of favors, payback, trade offs, and never ending campaign fundraising. Suddenly it's not about the people anymore, it's all about them. Others I think are power hungry to begin with and could care less about their constituents from day one.

The problem with incumbents is they're kind of like roaches; unless something goes way wrong for them, they're impossible to get rid of. They have the money, the connections, etc. They also rely on the apathetic nature of many Americans who won't take the time to keep track of their every move, good and bad. How many people do you know who are regularly in touch with their Senators or Representative to give them positive and/or negative feedback? For me, I can't think of many people. So, they get away with anything and everything for the most part. It's disheartening and discouraging. If more people would become educated about who's doing what in Congress and D.C. overall, I would like to believe "We the People" would rise up and fire most of these clowns. They work for us, not the other way around.

Great topic, Eliza.

 

[moburg]

A friend of mine has a policy of never voting for an incumbant. I think for most of us it comes down to who we consider the lesser of two evils.

We really need to start all our elected officials accountable for everything they do. We tend to forget that they work for us.

I didn't vote for any incumbents this year. Both Rep and Senator (same party as I am) won anyway. I voted write-in or third party.

 

[golfgal]

Well, I didn't like our Senator and didn't vote for him again, the problem is that there STILL isn't a decision as to who won. The funny thing is that the incumbent said when he was up by 200 votes that if it were him he wouldn't push the recount or contest the vote, now that the challenger contested the vote and pushed for a recount and is up by 200 votes, the incumbent has now filed a lawsuit so we are not paying millions to get this issue decided.

Most people vote on name recognition, probably less then 20% actually vote on issues-that is why people keep reelecting the same congresspeople.

 

[Goofycampers]

Well I think most people are apathetic or lazy when it comes to politics, they just don't take time to learn about what's going on or they vote for the same old party or the familiar name. I live in S.C. and my state is a prime example. This state voted Strom Thurmond into office when the man was in his 90's for pete's sake. It was widely known that he would nap during the day while at work.

 

[DisneyMomOK]

I wish there were term limits. Our Founding Fathers did not intend for these positions to be life-time careers.