For immediate release
July 17, 2018
Contact: Scott Tillman, U.S. Term Limits
Phone: (321) 345-7455
stillman@termlimits.com
Twelve Tennessee General Assembly Legislators Sign Term Limits Pledge
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Term Limits (USTL), the leader in the non-partisan, national movement to limit terms for elected officials, commends Tennessee state Senator Kerry Roberts for signing its Article V pledge. He committed to support a resolution applying for a congressional term limits amendment convention.
Pledge signers in the Tennessee House include Brandon Ogles (HD-61), Stacey Campfield (HD-89), Scott Cepicky (HD-64), Randell Stroud (HD-51), Johnny Garrett (HD-45), Dallas Sivley (HD-19), Kelly Keisling (HD-38), Chris Todd (HD-73), Andy Cole (HD-82), and Garry Moore (HD-24), as well as gubernatorial candidate, Kay White.
USTL President, Philip Blumel, commented on the pledges saying, “The strong support of congressional term limits among these Tennessee state candidates shows that there are people who are willing work together and listen to the majority of voters who want term limits. America needs a Congress that will be served by citizen legislators, not career politicians.”
The U.S. Term Limits Amendment Pledge is provided to candidates and members of the state legislatures. It reads, “I pledge, that as a member of the state legislature, I will support and vote for the resolution applying for an Article V convention for the limited purpose of enacting term limits on Congress.”
In the 1995 case, Thornton v. U.S. Term Limits, the Supreme Court of the United States opined that only a Constitutional Amendment could limit the terms of U.S. Senators and House Representatives. According to Nick Tomboulides, Executive Director of USTL, the best chance of imposing term limits on congress is through an Article V Convention of state legislatures. “While we’d like for Congress to take the high road and impose limits on itself, our goal is to trigger the a national term limits amendment proposal convention,” claims Tomboulides. “That is why it is important to get buy-in from state legislators,” he added.
Once proposed, the amendment must be ratified by 38 states.
Blumel noted, “More than 82% of Americans have rejected the career politician model and want to replace it with citizen leadership. The way to achieve that goal is through a congressional term limits amendment. These twelve state lawmakers know this and are willing to work to make sure we reach our goal.”
According to the last nationwide poll on term limits conducted by McLaughlin & Associates, conducted in January 2018, term limits enjoys wide bipartisan support. McLaughlin’s analysis states, “Support for term limits is broad and strong across all political, geographic and demographic groups. An overwhelming 82% of voters approve of a Constitutional Amendment that will place term limits on members of Congress.”
View Roberts’s signed pledge here.
View Ogles’s signed pledge here.
View Campfield’s signed pledge here.
View Cepicky’s signed pledge here.
View Stroud’s signed pledge here.
View Garrett’s signed pledge here.
View Sivley’s signed pledge here.
View Keisling’s signed pledge here.
View Todd’s signed pledge here.
View Cole’s signed pledge here.
View Moore’s signed pledge here.
View White’s signed pledge here.
###