Blue Sweeps the United States and my Neighborhood

My previous post asked you to go vote. And apparently, many Americans had already received the message, because where I live in the middle of the United State of America, there was record breaking turnout for the country's midterm election.

The hotly contested congressional seat I wrote of in Missouri was won by a good margin by a Democrat named Fred Wellman. He will represent me and my neighbors in Washington, D.C come January. The woman he beat, Anne Wagner, could possibly become a lobbyist in our nation's capitol or return to the GOP as a party fundraiser. I voted for Mr. Wellman because Ms. Wagner never held a town hall meeting the 14 years she was in Washington and frequently declined interviews from local news media. About six years ago I emailed her a concern on a controversial issue. She never replied to my concern, but I did receive spam from her campaign for several years as a result of it. The only time I heard from Ms. Wagner was when she wanted my vote. 

The state legislature race I wrote of was also won by a Democrat. I live in Missouri's 96th house district which was held by a man named Brad Christ. Christ apparently alienated so many of us that he was thrown out by those of us living here. Christ's downfall was, in part, due to his being in lock step with republican leadership. Christ voted to put a number of amendments on our ballots in August and this week. All of those proposed amendments by the republican-controlled house and state senate went down to miserable defeats. Christ also voted for redistricting Missouri mid-decade. Had that made it onto the ballot, it would have gerrymandered the Show Me State, to split the Kansas City area in half and add another Republican to the state's delegation. But, Missouri's Supreme Court said no. The whole effort at redistricting was at the request of President Donald Trump. As a backlash to Trump, Christ and his buddies, Missouri will have one more democrat in the soon-to-be Democratic-led congress.

The only constitutional amendment to pass (there are still votes outstanding on one minor issue as I write this) was put on the ballot by initiative petition. That amendment will strengthen Missouri's initiative petition process. If the legislature attempts to reverse the will of the people, it will need to have 80% of voters approve that action in a general election.

I would continue on with national election results in the U.S. but there are better reports by trusted news sources.

Morons in Congress

The system is broken.  By the system, I mean the US Congress and the overwhelming lack of cooperation between the two parties.  Instead of working to solve funding issues house Democrats and Republicans seem much more interested in advancing their careers and agendas than representing the people who elected them.

There is no solution in sight.  Instead of coming up with a permanent fix, congress continues to kick the can down the road when it comes to government funding.  And many don't seem to care what their actions do to this nation as long as they remain blindly loyal to their party's leadership.

The woman who represents my family and me in Congress is indicative of the blind loyalty of congressional members.  Ann Wagner, who has been elected to represent her Missouri district six times, has done very little in 12 years.  She has authored insignificant legislation in the house and added her name to more significant bills when it benefits the Republican party.

Wagner's' claim to fame was to co-chair the Missouri Republican party and serve as Ambassador to Luxembourg after being appointed by former President George Bush.  It was the Republican party's way of thanking her for helping it win gains in the early 2000's.

There are too many congress people just like Wagner who are feckless.  It's a wonder Congress gets anything accomplished.  And the Republicans aren't alone.  There are a number of clueless Democrats as well.

What is the solution to this malaise in Congress?  Term limits.  Apparently the American public thinks congress is ineffectual, but doesn't want to throw out its representatives in the House and Senate.  If a constituional ammendment were enacted to limit house members to six two year terms and Senate members to two six year terms, it might help solve the problem.  It would also get rid of some of the fossils in both chambers who have been sucking the tit of the public treasury for far too long.

Term limits would get rid of those who have become entrenched in power.  As an example Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer from New York would be forced to go home and so would Republican Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.  McConnell is 81 years old and the people of Kentucky have sent him back to Washington D.C. through at least 2026.  As a reference, McConnell was first elected to the US Senate in 1984.  That was the same year Americans elected Ronald Reagan to  a second term.  McConnell is showing his age of 81 and on at least two recent occasions has seemed to be disoriented while speaking in public.

It's time for these individuals to let someone else have a chance.  Maybe there are statesmen in this nation who are actually concerned about the future of the United States and would act to work with their colleagues on both sides of the aisle.