Don Bacon: “I want to thank my friend from Wisconsin for organizing this. He is a wonderful freshman Member of the class. I rise…”

“I want to thank my friend from Wisconsin for organizing this. He is a wonderful freshman Member of the class. I rise today in support of congressional term limits. In 1846, when then-Congressman Abraham Lincoln was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, he was part of a freshman class that made up one half of the 35th Congress. In other words, half of the Congress were new Members when he got elected. Today, in the 115th Congress, our freshmen class of 55 Members make up less than 20 percent of this body. But here is a more stark number. In the last election, 97 percent of House incumbents won reelection-- 97 percent. Only 3 percent of the challengers defeated an incumbent. I was fortunate to be one of the exceptions to these overwhelming odds. Since Abraham Lincoln, our country has grown, this institution has grown, and so has the length of time Members stay here. As a person who is new to Congress and is new to politics, I can tell you the reason why congressional favorability ratings are now at 8 percent. Our constituents feel that we have lost touch. The longer we stay here in Congress and don't cycle back to our home districts, the more out of touch we are perceived. To restore America's trust in Congress, we must institute term limits. Our Forefathers intended the House of Representatives to be an arm of government closest to the people, and to be the purest embodiment of a representative democracy.…”