Could it be that the Congress is not the problem?

[enhanced_deficit]

Could it be that the much maligned Congress is not the real problem and majority of Congress members are just reflection of majorities in their districts?

For example, Sen. Bob Casey, a democrat Obama supporter with medical equipment makers in PA, opposes new Obamacare tax on medical supplies.
Lindsey Graham with defense weapons makers in his district supports endless wars.
Peter King with many pro Israel Jewish constituents in his district sees terrorists everywhere and wants to keep war on terror going for long time.

I don't know much about Ron Paul's district but my guess is he had many "crazy" people there.

[NorthCarolinaLiberty]

Could it be that the much maligned Congress is not the real problem and majority of Congress members are just reflection of majorities in their districts?

For example, Sen. Bob Casey, a democrat Obama supporter with medical equipment makers in PA, opposes new Obamacare tax on medical supplies.
Lindsey Graham with defense weapons makers in his district supports endless wars.
Peter King with many pro Israel Jewish constituents in his district sees terrorists everywhere and wants to keep war on terror going for long time.

I don't know much about Ron Paul's district but my guess is he had many "crazy" people there.

Your average, weakling American basically wants three things:


1. TO BE FED. It's not a mystery why Americans are fat. The solution does not lie in cooking shows, medical research, or personal trainers. Those things increase while our girth also increases.

2. TO BE ENTERTAINED. Cable TV representatives canvassed door-to-door around 1970 and asked neighborhood residents if they'd being willing to pay directly for TV. We're now so addicted to thousands of channels that government regulation is our morphine drip.

3. TO EXERCISE PETTY POWER OVER THEIR FELLOW HUMAN.* How many times do you hear somebody cry for traffic enforcement regarding the motorist's behavior he doesn't like. How many times does a person sneer at another person, and--in some way, shape, or form--suggest there outa be a law.



Your representative is likely an average, weakling American who represents these views.





* I always maintained the first two items, but really learned the third point from this forum. (That means just the perspective and not to say that people here want petty power.)

[Cleaner44]

Congress is a major problem because swear an oath to the Constitution, while the people they are supposed to represent don't. An person in Congress has an obligation to learn the Constitution and follow it, so they can uphold the oath that they voluntarily take.

[MelissaWV]

Could it be that the much maligned Congress is not the real problem and majority of Congress members are just reflection of majorities in their districts?

There are a few things to consider here.

The majorities in their districts do not vote. People are not elected to Congress with 50%+1 citizen turnout. Hell, they don't even have 50%+1 voter turnout.

Assuming the majority of eligible citizens did vote in a Congressman, there is no way that this same majority is informed and qualified to form an opinion upon every piece of legislation that comes before Congress. This is why, in theory, experts are called before Congress to testify and educate them on the subject at hand. In practice this is pretty pointless since the lobbyists have already done a lot of the educating. The point is that the masses are even less informed as to the aspects of a piece of legislation, as a whole, than Congress. That's a sobering thought.

Lastly, as has already been discussed, Congressmen already swear an oath to the Constitution. If there were a bunch of constituents --- even a majority --- that wanted legislation that directly contradicted the Constitution, the Congressman should not help pass it based on their oath. Now, they might start a campaign to introduce a Constitutional amendment, and that'd be another kettle of fish.

[Warrior_of_Freedom]

when everybody calls every body else stupid ,then everybody is stupid

[Cutlerzzz]

Congress and the government are just a reflection of the American people. Most people are also very supportive of their congressman, with 90% being reelected in 2012.

Politicians say stupid things and sound completely uninformed on many issues because the Americans people are stupid and completely uninformed on most issues. Congress thinks that politics is a game of the good guys vs the bad between rivals because most Americans view Republicans vs Democrats as a game, similar to Bears/Packers, Cowboys/Redskins, or Yankees/Red Sox.

[VoluntaryAmerican]

Could it be that the much maligned Congress is not the real problem and majority of Congress members are just reflection of majorities in their districts?

For example, Sen. Bob Casey, a democrat Obama supporter with medical equipment makers in PA, opposes new Obamacare tax on medical supplies.
Lindsey Graham with defense weapons makers in his district supports endless wars.
Peter King with many pro Israel Jewish constituents in his district sees terrorists everywhere and wants to keep war on terror going for long time.

I don't know much about Ron Paul's district but my guess is he had many "crazy" people there.

What motivates a representative? is what you are really asking here. And I think the people in a Reps. district are one key factor (because they want to be reelected) but there are also others... like self-interest, becoming more powerful, personal beliefs and personal integrity.

I do think Congress is part of the problem (as are many people who make up the electorate) but Congress is probably our best hope moving forward.

[Warrior_of_Freedom]

Congress and the government are just a reflection of the American people. Most people are also very supportive of their congressman, with 90% being reelected in 2012.

Politicians say stupid things and sound completely uninformed on many issues because the Americans people are stupid and completely uninformed on most issues. Congress thinks that politics is a game of the good guys vs the bad between rivals because most Americans view Republicans vs Democrats as a game, similar to Bears/Packers, Cowboys/Redskins, or Yankees/Red Sox.
no it's not exactly a reflection, through lots of money people aren't given a choice. they suppress opposition at debates and everything else possible. Has the Ron Paul campaign taught you nothing? The media jerkoffs tried to act like he didn't exist. It's bullshit to blame it on everybody. The only reason to blame it on everybody is because they haven't done something about it yet.

[Ender]

no it's not exactly a reflection, through lots of money people aren't given a choice. they suppress opposition at debates and everything else possible. Has the Ron Paul campaign taught you nothing? The media jerkoffs tried to act like he didn't exist. It's bullshit to blame it on everybody. The only reason to blame it on everybody is because they haven't done something about it yet.

In agreement. Most people are caught in the American Trap and working the 9 to 5. This keeps them in The Matrix with little time to question or do something.

[AnarchoCapitalist]

Congress and the government are just a reflection of the American people. Most people are also very supportive of their congressman, with 90% being reelected in 2012.

Politicians say stupid things and sound completely uninformed on many issues because the Americans people are stupid and completely uninformed on most issues. Congress thinks that politics is a game of the good guys vs the bad between rivals because most Americans view Republicans vs Democrats as a game, similar to Bears/Packers, Cowboys/Redskins, or Yankees/Red Sox.

Bingo

[thoughtomator]

Some of it is that the electorate is just as corrupt as the politicians they elect.

Some of it is that the people who get the most actual votes are not the ones who get the most official votes.

At the bottom of it all is that money buys both votes and politicians and it's the same tiny group of elites who own every politician of significance in the nation. Should any politician they don't own win an office, they will immediately buy him or her as well, and destroy him or her if they cannot be purchased.

This system can be accurately called Fascism, or neo-feudalism, or any of a variety of other terms that properly express what a political system that is 100% corrupt top to bottom without exception looks like.

[VIDEODROME]

I think there is classic dilemma of when a person must decide whether to stand against corrupt spending or just go with the flow.

Like if a person in sports decides to be the only clean person when typically other people are doing steroids and as a result they lose.

I imagine that on some level Congress is aware they're all in this kind of trap. As a group, they don't want to be in the pockets of lobbyists(Well some don't, I think Graham loves it). While as individuals, they don't want to be the honest guy that loses. Maybe they try to have it both ways by setting up deals for lobbyists that don't fuck over the small guy to hard.

There does not seem to be a block in place to discourage this. The Supreme Court seems to limited. What if the Supreme court could fire Congressman who draft to many unconstitutional laws?

The worst and most disgusting failure is the Media as a watchdog. Today they're more like lapdogs. In fact, they're now in the same boat as Congress in a way as they're probably owned by the same entities that lobby Congress.

I guess in a way, a mix of taxation with regulation created this monster in the first place by making a need for lobbies to form an buy themselves exemptions. If Congress was more clever they would reform the system and undo these incentives. Unfortunately, maybe some like the corrupts system just like some sports players would want to keep the extra edge by taking drugs.

[heavenlyboy34]

Congress and the government are just a reflection of the American people. Most people are also very supportive of their congressman, with 90% being reelected in 2012.

Politicians say stupid things and sound completely uninformed on many issues because the Americans people are stupid and completely uninformed on most issues. Congress thinks that politics is a game of the good guys vs the bad between rivals because most Americans view Republicans vs Democrats as a game, similar to Bears/Packers, Cowboys/Redskins, or Yankees/Red Sox.
A commonly believed myth. Congress represents their own greed and the biddings of whomever buys/bribes/lobbies them.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oBo8CJxatQ

[thoughtomator]

What if the Supreme court could fire Congressman who draft to many unconstitutional laws?

Why bother? SCOTUS is effectively a superlegislature with not only the ability to veto the actual legislature, but to create its own legislation completely immune from review or accountability, without even having to pander to an electorate.

[Cutlerzzz]

A commonly believed myth. Congress represents their own greed and the biddings of whomever buys/bribes/lobbies them.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oBo8CJxatQ

There isn't anything myth like about it. It isn't some kind of secret that congress is corrupt and serves special interests groups. The overwhelming majority of Americans know this, but support and reelect their congressman every year anyway.

[MelissaWV]

There isn't anything myth like about it. It isn't some kind of secret that congress is corrupt and serves special interests groups. The overwhelming majority of Americans know this, but support and reelect their congressman every year anyway.

Which Congressmen are elected with an overwhelming majority of the eligible voters having voted in the election for them? I had no idea voter turnout was so high for Congressional races.

[Cutlerzzz]

Which Congressmen are elected with an overwhelming majority of the eligible voters having voted in the election for them? I had no idea voter turnout was so high for Congressional races.

Alright, the overwhelming majority of Americans either vote for them anyways or don't vote.

[heavenlyboy34]

There isn't anything myth like about it. It isn't some kind of secret that congress is corrupt and serves special interests groups. The overwhelming majority of Americans know this, but support and reelect their congressman every year anyway.

You said:

Congress and the government are just a reflection of the American people. Most people are also very supportive of their congressman, with 90% being reelected in 2012.

The myth, as I was trying to say is that the congress/gov't are "a reflection of the American people". This is a myth we're told all our lives from our first days of civics classes to first exposure to media to our graves, so a lot of people believe it.

[VoluntaryAmerican]

A commonly believed myth. Congress represents their own greed and the biddings of whomever buys/bribes/lobbies them.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oBo8CJxatQ

It's a mixture of many interests, but yes that's a major one.

[Cutlerzzz]

You said:
The myth, as I was trying to say is that the congress/gov't are "a reflection of the American people". This is a myth we're told all our lives from our first days of civics classes to first exposure to media to our graves, so a lot of people believe it.

Let me rephrase that.

Congress and the government are a reflection of the majority of Americans, and a majority of Americans are a reflection of their government. The government wanted to create a dumbed down, submissive, easily divided, dependent population that would allow the government a free reign to get away with enormous corruption and enormous (illegal) expansions of their power, and they created one with the Department of Education, Drug Wars, Cold/Terror/World Wars, gun control, the welfare state, and government media propaganda.

At this point most Americans know that the government is controlled by special interest groups. They just don't care so long as either their team is in control or they keep getting free stuff, so they'll keep supporting the system as it is and reelecting the same people.