ABSTRACT
The stability of our Constitution, the oldest written system in the world, makes us the envy of the world. The structure of our government has become part of the problem, says the Committee on the Constitutional System. The committee offers seven suggestions requiring five constitutional amendments. The most fundamental would give representatives four-year terms and senator’s eight-year terms. A system in which everyone agrees on the goal but no one can move toward it has too many checks and balances, the committee argues. The rise of the primary system, modern technology such as television and jet planes, and modern campaign methods such as direct-mail fund-raising have enabled politicians to get elected without the help of the central party organization. A restoration of party loyalty could counteract some of the centrifugal tendencies of the constitutional separation of powers, the Committee on the Constitutional System argues.
