10 Washington Politicians Who Have Overstayed Their Welcome

I have always been a strong advocate of term limits. No matter that the elected went in with high ideals and good intentions, too many years of service allow the individual to become entrenched in politics as usual. Lobbyists descend, corporations bribe, unions threaten. The result is a man or woman who is indebted to special interests and not the citizens who elected them. As my grandfather used to unceremoniously say, "throw out the old bum and get a new one in." Here are ten politicians that I feel need to move along.

SENATOR ROBERT BYRD - Senator Byrd is the obvious choice, of course. Not only is he as old as dirt, he was once a bonafide member of the Klu Klux Klan and his stance on race relations through the years has been questionable at the least. Though he says he regrets it now, Byrd was responsible for launching a filibuster and voting against the 1964 Civil Rights Act. Now he seems to go with the flow but his days as an effective representative have passed him by.

SENATOR JOHN MCCAIN - Senator McCain is a loveable man. He is a military hero and an advocate for veterans' affairs. He is admittedly an independent thinker who espouses political reform. Putting aside his involvement in the Keating Five scandal in the 1980's, McCain has served us honorably and should be lauded. He has had two unsuccessful bids for the presidency and plans to run for re-election to his senate seat in 2010. I believe it's time for him to retire and not become another senate old-timer.

CONGRESSMAN JOHN CONYERS - Congressman Conyers has been re-elected 22 times without much opposition. Frankly, I've tired of his droning whine and continuous investigations. He's terribly liberal which is a good thing since we need extremes on both sides to balance things out. But he recently came under fire for repeatedly introducing a bill that would overturn NIH Public Access Policy and stop allowing federally funded research from being available to the public. Critics say Congressman Conyers was influenced by the hefty contributions from publishing houses.

SENATOR MITCH MCCONNELL - Senator McConnell is definitely a staunch conservative. In 2006, he got a perfect score from The American Conservative Union. He was on the frontline to pass a bill that would allow the government tap our telephones and monitor electronic activity without a warrent. He is well known for his opposition to Campaign Finance Reform citing it as a violation of the First Ammendment. He remains a strong supporter of the invasion of Iraq. Senator McConnell is an outspoken Rush Limbaugh republican and needs to move along.

CONGRESSMAN HENRY WAXMAN - Congressman Waxman is another politician who needs to go away. He, like Conyers, spends all his time investigating. Grant you, he was the chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee so that was his job. But this guy takes it to a new level. He has formed "special investigative committees" to investigate the investigations in case something was missed. He has come under scrutiny for blocking a bill to build a subway in a poorer neighborhood in his district. The subway eventually was built but critics believe he was influenced by affluent homeowner groups who didn't want it.

SENATOR JIM INHOFE - Senator Inhofe often refers to the bible as a source for his political decisions. He vehemently denies that global warming is an issue and has accused the Weather Channel of perpetrating a "global warming hoax." His environmental record is dismal, to say the least. He has voted to deny funding for low income energy assistance and other programs. It is no wonder since only one other senator besides Senator Inhofe has recieved more donations from the oil and gas industry. Since elected, he has recieved over one million dollars in campaign contributions from the energy sector. He needs to go away.

SENATOR DIANNE FEINSTEIN - Senator Feinstein is wishy-washy. She can't seem to make up her mind about what she thinks. While she voted to approve the Iraq war resolution in 2002, she later stated that President Bush misled her. Amazingly, it has been reported she and her husband have made millions of dollars from the Iraq and Afghanistan contracts through his company, Perini. Senator Feinstein talks from both sides of her mouth and needs to go away.

SENATOR RICHARD SHELBY - Senator Shelby started off as a democrat but switched his party affiliation to republican one day after the republicans won control of both houses in midterm elections. A senate investigation committee found that in 2004, Shelby revealed classified information to Fox News while he was a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee. Though no criminal charges ensued, the ethics of this man remain questionable.

SENATOR JOE LIEBERMAN - Senator Lieberman has great talent for straddling the fence. He started off as a democrat who often voted along republican lines. He has considered switching over to the republican party but has not. When he lost the primary vote in his state in 2008, he declared himself an independent candidate. This man really wants to be the president. But his shady, smooth and fickle moves indicates to me that he is an untrustworthy character. I'd like to see him go.

SENATOR ORRIN HATCH - Senator Hatch once defended polygamy in a taped interview. His son is a well-known Washington lobbyist and Senator Hatch sees no problem with championing issues that benefit his son's clients. He adamantly supports the pharmaceutical industry which donates generously to his causes and campaigns. He is a talented musician and singer but does not sing his songs in the best interest of the American people.

There are many more not mentioned here that have overstayed their welcome. I agree with my grandfather. Throw out the old bum and get a new one in.