Topic: Political Reform

A proposal is made to implement eight-year term limits for politicians and shorten legislative sessions to four or five months to force representatives to return home. This reform aims to remove "political criminals" from Washington and reduce the influence of election money by ensuring officials are not constantly fighting for re-election or special interests.

Jim Welch describes the 1994-1995 efforts to form a new political party in Texas. Unlike other states, the Texas group moved quickly to establish a platform and bylaws aimed at dispersing power away from a centralized authority. Welch notes that the national leadership in Dallas eventually rejected their proposed bylaws for giving too much power to the people.

The Texas committee continued to develop a political platform despite orders from the Dallas national office to disband. Jim Welch explains that Ross Perot changed his mind about a new party, opting instead to allow established Republicans and Democrats to speak at their convention. The committee planned to use proxy votes to regain control from the national leadership.

The Reform Party committee attempted to organize leaders across every U.S. congressional district to secure proxy votes for their platform. The goal was to demand the removal of Republicans and Democrats from the convention. Jim Welch notes that this internal struggle was entirely ignored by the mainstream press at the time.