Imagine this:

[cali]

Poll question: Imagine this:

There's a popular president. He's been in office for 4 years, and just been re-elected with 70% of the vote. He's cut defense spending, pushed through reforms such as single payer healthcare and a livable wage. Now he wants to repeal the 22nd amendmemt. He's gotten it through the House and Senate, now it goes to the people.

Would you vote for it?

[gateley]

1. No. Too dangerous. nt

[cali]

3. indeed.

Concentrating power in one person for a long duration of time is a poor idea. For every FDR, there's 10 who will abuse such power, and the opportunity for malfeasnance on a large scale exists. Plus, the old chestnut is true.

Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. And the presidency offers opportunities to garner close to absolute power.

[gateley]

7. I was thinking the "absolute power" quote when I was voting. Even Mike

Gravel has said that the power that came with being a Senator went to his head!

[Auntie Bush]

11. You don't have to even be in power for years to be corruptive. It can

be accomplished within days. Think bush!

[silverojo]

6. One reason this would be a bad idea

1988 Headline:
"Ronald Reagan wins third term". :scared:

[Fridays Child]

2. No. In fact we need congressional term limits, too. And retiring members...

...should be forbidden from taking lobbying positions for for an amount of time equivalent to the number of years they served in Congress.

[cali]

4. I like the latter idea, but the term limits are unneccessary in Congress

power is diffused there among 535 people.

[Fridays Child]

17. That, alone, might serve to limit the time they'd want to remain in Congress.

Regulating when they may become lobbyists, I mean.

[cali]

5. interesting that none of the 6 people voting yes want to explain

why they'd vote to repeal the 22nd. You'd think after the last 7 years that no one here would vote yes, but evidently the unitary presidency really isn't such a worry to them. Ideology trumps all.

[BlueJazz]

9. I voted Yes because the Question had stipulations in it..

"He's cut defense spending, pushed through reforms such as single payer healthcare and a livable wage".

If He/She stayed in office another 4 Years, the Republicans would be scared to overturn such progress.

It was a difficult choice though....

[bunnies]

8. Hell no.

I might be crazy but thats INSANE!

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

10. It can be argued either way. The founders didn't seem worried about it, and they had

more practical interest in preventing monarchy in America than we do.

On the other hand, I am more worried about more than 8 years of a disaster than I am about cutting short something good. Disasters seem to outnumber good things of late.

[cali]

13. Perhaps so, but the Founders couldn't see into the future and

they sure weren't right about everything. Fortunately they were smart enough to realize that.

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

16. If you are referring to the amendment process, the 22nd was passed with the worst intentions

I'm cool with it today, but it was passed for largely partisan reasons, not for the objective good of the country.

I can think of equally partisan amendments that would be bad for the country, like an amendment to allow Schwarzenegger to run. (The bar on foreign born presidents is not a bad idea, IMO. It would be an error to overturn it just because some particular foreign born guy is popular.)

[Sarah Ibarruri]

12. I think there's a reason why he's doing this.......

.... Seems to me he's trying to re-do the entire country, oust the rich, and bring the poor to middle class level, but the CIA, the Weston Florida mega-rich Venezuelans, and mega-rich Miami Cubans are plotting to take back Venezuela to serfdom and misery like they had it before, and Chavez has no intention of allowing that.

[EV_Ares]

15. Yes, you are hitting on a very strong possibility.

[ruggerson]

14. Chances are if it happened in this country it would exempt the incumbent

and only kick in after he/she leaves office.

And, yes, I think the 22nd should be repealed.

[Yukari Yakumo]

18. Dunno...

Part of me would like to see Chimpy run again just so he can get annihilated in '08. But that might be a little dangerous...