House Joint Resolution 5

When I got on Facebook tonight upon getting home from work, I had a cause invitation from a friend to join a cause he had created, opposing House Joint Resolution 5. Being intrigued, I followed the link, and not wanting to be taken in by something that was not in fact real, I did some digging. Rest assured, this is very real, and very scary. Here's the breakdown, with a little constitutional history lesson thrown in for good measure:

The 22nd Amendment (link will take you to the Wikipedia article) states that a president may not serve more than two terms, consecutive or not, unless the president took over for someone else, and has served more than two years of that person's term as president, in which case the person that took over can only be elected to the presidency once, and cannot be re-elected. I highly recommend reading the Wikipedia article.

A search of the Library of Congress' aptly named Thomas site brings up House Joint Resolution 5, sponsored by Democratic Rep. Jose Serrano of New York, currently under consideration by the House Judiciary Committee. The purpose of this resolution is to repeal the 22nd amendment, thereby making it possible for a president to serve as many terms as he or she can be elected to, much the way FDR was, who, by the way, was elected to his fourth term in 1944 and died in office in 1945.

Long story short, if this thing goes all the way, Obama (or anyone else, really), could keep being perpetually re-elected. I don't care who's in office; the 22nd Amendment serves a purpose and needs to stay. As Jefferson said (with apologies for my updated take), if that happens, POTUS could be for life, and would become an inheritance, not an elected position, which flies in the face of why we started this nation all those years ago. We elect a president, not a king.

As of right now, I've sent an email off to my representative (Paul Ryan), and I'm hoping to hear back from him soon. I've also joined the cause on Facebook; if you'd like to do the same, click the link below. I plan to fight this every step of the way and make sure this doesn't happen.

I guess now we know where Obama's "eight to ten years" statement comes into play, eh? (Assuming that one hasn't reached its expiration date)

UPDATE: Join the Cause "Americans Against H. J. Res. 5" on Facebook