We The People ... it's time to step up to the plate

A balanced budget amendment to the Constitution is silly. It fits right in with term limits and pledges to not raise taxes. This stuff doesn’t just limit the power of elected officials (which is a bad thing), it limits the power of the folks doing the electing. I want the people I elect to be able to have access to all the tools they could possibly need to solve the problems facing our country. I also want them to be able to react to changing circumstances with the ability to change their minds. I want them to use their skills and experiences and knowledge (the reasons I elect them) to make decisions without my input. If I don’t like the job they do, I can vote them out of office. If someone who isn’t doing their job stays in office, that’s our fault as voters. We can blame the system and lobbying groups, but in the end we cast the votes and we have to take responsibility. Constitutional amendments to limit the options in front of elected officials, or to limit their terms in office, are efforts to relieve voters of their responsibilities. I think it’s high time we started shouldering our responsibilities. Putting pressure on our representatives to compromise and collaborate rather than sticking to ideologically driven positions with little historical or logical support would be a start. It is time that we the people started doing our job.