Jodey Arrington: “George Mason, the patriot, said: ``Nothing so strongly impels a man to regard the interest of his constituents as the…”

“George Mason, the patriot, said: ``Nothing so strongly impels a man to regard the interest of his constituents as the certainty of returning to the general mass of the people, from whence he was taken, where he must participate in their burdens.'' Translation: The Founding Fathers wanted us to come here and do the people's business and then go home, back to the ``farm,'' and live under the rules we passed. They want us to come up here and represent the people, their interests, and no other; the public's interests, no other; America's interests, no other. They wanted us to come here with a singular purpose and that is to do what is right and good for the American people and to have the courage to step up to the plate, because every generation is called to do so, and to make the sacrifices and to make the tough calls and take on the tough issues of the day and solve them, even if that causes you to have a shorter political career than you anticipated. That is the theme of this Special Order, Mr. Speaker. It is term limits. We the Members who gather today to talk about it might be taken off some of the Christmas card lists of some of our friends and colleagues. But this does not in any way disparage Members who served here for many years and many terms. I think you have folks here--and I think in fact I can name some--who have done a good job, who have served well. But I don't think it is healthy.…”