Florida officially calls on U.S. Congress to pass term limits amendment!

The Florida legislature today officially called on the U.S. Congress to pass and send to the states for ratification a constitutional amendment limiting Congressional terms in office.

The resolution, passed by acclamation in both houses of the Florida legislature, will be sent to the president of the United States, Speaker of the U.S. House, president of the U.S. Senate and each member of the Florida Congressional delegation.

Florida is the first state to take this step, but it will not be the last. With term limits polling at all-time highs and the Congress at record lows, pressure is building around the nation for Congress to take action.

Sen. Jim DeMint and Rep. David Schweikert have introduced a constitutional amendment (SJR 11 and HJR 71, respectively) limiting congressional terms in the Senate and House. While the Florida action does not specifically mention any specific legislative proposal, they are the first state to go on record in the past decade supporting a congressional term limitation constitutional amendment. Voters overwhelmingly supported Florida’s state constitutional limits on state legislators in 1992 with 77 percent support. Polling from Quinnipiac University in 2009 suggests 82 percent of Floridians continue to support term limits on public officials.

Nationally, the support for term limits remains strong with 78 percent of Americans supporting congressional term limits according to a September 2010 poll conducted for FoxNews by Public Opinion Dynamics. Support is strong across partisan lines with 84 percent of Republicans favoring the idea while 74 percent of Democrats and 74 percent of Independents also support limiting congressional terms.

Passage of the term limits constitutional amendment requires a two-thirds vote in the House and Senate and ratification by three-quarters (38) of the states in order to become part of the Constitution. The states are the easy part. The trick is getting through the U.S. Congress and this official call from a important state like Florida is a big help.

The Florida resolution was introduced by State Rep. Matt Caldwell (HM83) in the Florida House and Sen. Joe Negron (SM672) in the Senate.

"The evidence is in. Term limits work,” said Rep. Matt Caldwell of Lehigh Acres. "New York, Illinois and Florida have all been faced with tough decisions on how to balance their state budgets over the last few years. Only one of these states has term limits and only one of these states has cut their budgets to match their revenues and refused to raise taxes."

"Congress is on a collision course with federal bankruptcy and our last, best hope is to bring serious and permanent change to Washington, D.C.," he said.

Special thanks to Rep. Caldwell, Sen. Joe Negron, the Campaign for Liberty and grass roots lobbyist John Hallman for their work in getting this done!

Congressional term limits memorial passes Florida House!

Rep. Matt Caldwell's memorial that calls on Florida's Congressional delegation to pass federal term limits has passed the Florida House today!

Grass roots lobbyist John Hallman, who has helped shepherd the bill through Tallahassee, reports Sen. Joe Negron's version of the bill is headed to the Senate floor imminently and expects it too will pass.

Congressional term limits resolution advances -- Take Action!

The Congressional term limits memorial, in which the state legislature officially calls on the Florida Congressional delegation to enact term limits at the federal level, has advanced through key committees in both the Florida State House and Senate, but it still faces obstacles before it reaches the floor for a vote.

In the House, Rep. Matt Caldwell's HM83 passed the Federal Affairs Subcommittee and is now waiting for a vote in State Affairs. If it passes there, it will head to the floor for a full vote.

In the Senate, Sen. Joe Negron's SB672 passed the Rules Subcommittee on Ethics and Elections by a vote of 7-3. It is now heading towards it final stop in the Senate Rules Committee. This is a tough one, but we do have an ace in the hole: Sen. Negron sits on this committee!

Recall this memorial is important. If successful if Florida, we'll work in other states to pass similar resolutions to ignite an official clamor for Congressional term limits. Right now there are bills in both houses of the U.S. Congress with cosponsors calling for 3/2 (that is, three terms in the House and two in the Senate) term limits amendment. But for the amendment to go the states for ratification, the easy part, it has to get through the Congress itself.

Please take action now:

1) Contribute to the effort. The Campaign for Liberty has chosen these bills as a priority and grassroots lobbyist John Hallman is on the case. Please make a contribution right now to C4L. All contributions through this link go solely to the legislative effort.

2) Contact members of the Senate Rules Committee today and ask them for a floor vote on SB672. Click on their names below to send an email:

Chair: Senator John Thrasher (R)
Vice Chair: Senator JD Alexander (R)

Senator Larcenia J. Bullard (D)
Senator Anitere Flores (R)
Senator Don Gaetz (R)
Senator Andy Gardiner (R)
Senator Dennis L. Jones, D.C. (R)
Senator Evelyn J. Lynn (R)
Senator Gwen Margolis (D)
Senator Joe Negron (R)
Senator Garrett Richter (R)
Senator Gary Siplin (D)
Senator Christopher L. "Chris" Smith (D)
Senator Stephen R. Wise (R)

Thanks!

ACTION ITEM: Florida's term limits memorials need public support

Florida's House and Senate resolutions (called 'memorials') for Congressional term limits are gaining support, but we have to keep the pressure on to get these bills through this legislative session.

The two bills, if passed, would put the Florida legislature officially on record calling for Congressional term limits. Moreover, it resolves that “copies of this memorial be dispatched to the President of the United States, to the President of the United States Senate, to the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, and to each member of the Florida delegation to the United States Congress." The memorials are part of the mounting pressure from all quarters being put on the U.S. Congress to pass a term limits amendment.

Rep. Matt Caldwell's HM83 has attracted nine cosponsors and Sen. Joe Negron's SM672 has attracted one. The Florida Campaign for Liberty has adopted the bills and their grass roots lobbyist John Hallman is working on adding cosponsors. Both bills have two committee stops before a floor vote. Here's the details:

HM83 MEMORIAL by Caldwell (CO-SPONSORS) Ahern; Artiles; Gaetz; Metz; Nuñez; O'Toole; Perry; Pilon; Wood has been referred to two committees:

1. Federal Affairs Subcommittee
2. State Affairs Committee

SM672 MEMORIAL by Negron (CO-SPONSORS) Evers
has been referred to two committees:

1. Rules Subcommittee on Ethics and Elections
2. Rules Committee

These bills are simply memorials. They will pass if there is enough public clamor for them. So let's get clamoring. Here's how you can help today:

+ Call or write Rep. Clay Ford asking for a hearing for HM83, the term limits memorial, in the House Federal Affairs Committee.
+ Call or write Sen. Miguel Diaz de la Portilla and ask for a hearing on SM672, the term limits memorial, in his Senate Committee on Ethics and Elections.
+ Contact your own representative and senator asking that they cosponsor the bills.
+ Contribute to our man on the ground, John Hallman, via the Florida Campaign for Liberty. Make checks payable to Florida C4L, 209 S. Clyde Ave., Kissimmee, FL 34741 and be sure to write Term Limits Memorial in the memo field of your check.

If enough of us take these steps, Florida will officially let its Congressional delegation where we stand. We'll be first, but other states will follow our example. The Congressional term limits amendment bills have 16 cosponsors and over 80 Congressional candidates have pledged to join as cosponsors if elected. If we want Congressional term limits, the time to turn on the pressure is right now.

State Sen. Joe Negron files resolution for Congressional term limits!

Great news! Florida Sen. Joe Negron has sponsored a Senate companion for Rep. Matt Caldwell's resolution, or memorial as they are called in the legislature, calling for term limits on the U.S. Congress.

With a term limits amendment bill with cosponsors in both Houses of Congress for the first time since the mid-1990s, it is time for us to put the pressure on Congress anyway we can to cosponsor and vote for these bills. One way is to have our state legislatures officially call for Congressional term limits.

Sen. Joe Negron and Rep. Matt Caldwell are taking the lead for the 79 percent of Floridians who support the idea.

Sen. Negron's bill -- SM 672 -- is a mirror of Rep. Caldwell's HM 83 that, if passed, would officially call for Congressional term limits. Moreover, it resolves that “copies of this memorial be dispatched to the President of the United States, to the President of the United States Senate, to the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, and to each member of the Florida delegation to the United States Congress."

Rep. Caldwell successfully shepherded this bill through the House last session, but it died without a Senate companion. This session Caldwell added a co-sponsor in the House, Rep. Matt Gaetz of Fort Walton Beach.

A lot of the legwork on these bills is being done by grass roots political consultant John Hallman and the activist group Campaign for Liberty, who have chosen the memorials as priority legislation for the session

But they need our help:

1) Send a thank you to the two Matts (Caldwell and Gaetz) in the House and Sen. Negron in the Senate. Let them know we appreciate it and that these bills are worth their continued efforts.

2) Contact your state rep and ask him or her to cosponsor and vote for this bill. To find your representative, go here and select the FIND YOUR REPRESENTATIVE pull-down menu on the top left.

3) Contact Rep. Clay Ford here and ask for a vote on Caldwell's HM 83 by the Federal Affairs Subcommittee.

4) Contact your state senator and ask him or her to cosponsor and support Sen. Negron's bill. To find your senator, go here.

5) Write a letter to editor in support of the memorials.

6) Support U.S. Term Limits and Campaign for Liberty with financial assistance for the effort.

We can do this. After all, the Caldwell bill is NOT an Article 5 call for a Constitutional Convention, but simply a resolution. And, unlike Congress members – who have a self-interest in opposing Congressional term limits – state legislators have a self-interested reason is passing them: Congressional term limits would open up seats they can run for. They know as well as anyone that incumbents in Congress statistically can’t lose except via death or indictment.

To follow the bill using the House’s BillTracker, go here. Senate, here.

If we are successful in Florida, other states will follow our lead. Believe me, the Congress will feel the pressure if state after state (and poll after poll) call for term limits. Let's do it!

Florida House resolution calls for Congressional term limits!

With a term limits amendment bill in both Houses of Congress, it is time for us to put the pressure on Congress anyway we can to cosponsor and vote for these bills. On way is to have our state legislatures officially call for Congressional term limits.

Rep. Matt Caldwell, a state rep from Lehigh Acres, Fla., is taking the lead in his state. Rep. Caldwell has introduced a resolution – HM 83 – that, if passed, would call for Congressional term limits. Moreover, it resolves that “copies of this memorial be dispatched to the President of the United States, to the President of the United States Senate, to the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, and to each member of the Florida delegation to the United States Congress.”

Rep. Caldwell successfully shepherded this bill through the House last session, but it died without a Senate companion.

This session will be different. First, Rep. Matt Gaetz of Fort Walton Beach signed on as the first cosponsor. Now, the statewide activist group Campaign for Liberty is considering adding the bill to it focus list for the next session. And term limits are a favorite cause of grass roots political consultant John Hallman, who is on the case.

Here’s how you can help:

1) Send a thank you to the two Matts (Caldwell and Gaetz). Let them know we appreciate it and that this bill is worth their continued efforts.

2) Contact your state rep and ask him or her to cosponsor and vote for this bill. To find your representative, go here and select the FIND YOUR REPRESENTATIVE pull-down menu on the top left.

3) Contact your state senator and ask him or her to introduce a similar bill in the Senate. To find your senator, go here.

4) Write a letter to editor in support of the resolution.

Term limit supporters in other states should follow suit. This is easier than you think. After all, the Caldwell bill is NOT an Article 5 call for a Constitutional Convention, but simply a resolution.

And, unlike Congress members – who have a self-interest in opposing Congressional term limits – state legislators have a self-interested reason is passing them: Congressional term limits would open up seats they can run for. They know as well as anyone that incumbents in Congress statistically can’t lose except via death or indictment.

To follow the bill using the House’s BillTracker, go here. You will also find the full text of the bill.

This is another important salvo in the battle for Congressional term limits. Join the fight!