Cleaning Up Congress
I think "Congress's Real Crimes" [July 3-10] should be the cover story in a future issue of U.S. News. Gloria Borger and a few others have begun to highlight the dangers of incumbency in Congress, not the least of which are incompetence, inefficiency, and laziness. Major issues, like the millions of illegal immigrants in our midst, did not pop up yesterday but have been growing unchecked for decades because of the inaction and political charades in Congress. Ross Perot pinpointed and criticized the problem of incumbency during his presidential campaigns in the 1990s. Voters should have listened.
GENE WALTERS
Glastonbury, Conn.
Americans have forgotten that elected officials should stay in office because they do what is best for the country, not for themselves or for special interest groups. Voting against every incumbent regardless of party affiliation will put the Democrats in control, but even as a lifelong Republican, I make this nonpolitical plea: Voting incumbents out of office will get the message across to both parties. One term with reformed Democrats is better than surrendering America to the minority.
JAMES H. MCNENNY
Stow, Ohio
One point Borger overlooked was calling for term limits for each representative and each senator. If the office of president is limited to two terms (eight years), then that of representatives and senators should be limited as well.
JACQUELINE G. LANPHERE
Madison, Ala.
Sister Cities Diplomacy
Thanks for mentioning the Birmingham, Ala., Sister Cities program with China [Datebook, July 17], designed to build "personal ties across national lines." I was one of the college graduates who went to teach in Anshan, China. In fact, I think I learned as much from the students and people in Anshan as they learned from me. The Sister Cities program is an amazing example of people-to-people diplomacy, a worthwhile endeavor in our age of heightened tension and conflict. As Gandhi once said: "You must be the change you want to see in the world."
BLAKE PRITCHETT
Athens, Ga.
This story appears in the July 31, 2006 print edition of U.S. News & World Report.