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The presidential election wasn’t the only nail-​biter in our fair land. There was the Missouri Senate race which had been hard fought for months when, just weeks before Election Day, Governor Mel Carnahan died in a terrible plane crash.

Senator John Ashcroft suspended his campaign as people mourned. But Carnahan remained on the ballot. His widow announced she’d go to Washington in his place. On November 7th by the slimmest of margins and with allegations of voter fraud and irregularities in Democratic strongholds Carnahan won.

Senator Ashcroft could probably have sued, probably won, and probably stayed in the U.S. Senate. A deceased person obviously cannot meet the legal requirements to be on the ballot. But Ashcroft gracefully declined to contest the election. Instead, he offered congratulations, seeking to unite the people of Missouri he was still pledged to serve. Perhaps it all comes down to there being something more important to John Ashcroft than being a U.S. Senator.

I had the privilege of working with Senator Ashcroft in Washington. So many politicians give lip service to term limits, but never lift a finger behind the scenes to advance the cause. Senator Ashcroft was different. He and his staff constantly had new ideas and rolled-​up sleeves. John Ashcroft served under term limits as Attorney General and as Governor. He believed they helped him stay focused and energetic. When he went to the U.S. Senate, he voluntarily pledged to limit himself to two terms in office. Like all great leaders, Ashcroft leads by example.

This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.

Beware of FCC agents bearing gifts. There might be a hidden price tag. The Federal Communications Commission is conducting a test of free speech. This is only a test.

For the first time in over three decades, TV and radio broadcasters are going to be allowed to either criticize or endorse political candidates without being forced to provide so-​called “equal time” to opponents. Geez, it might be nice to know the editorial opinions behind the news we get. But for 60 days only, though. Then the 5 dictators on the FCC board will collect a lot of report cards and see how we all did with our freedom. And they will decide whether we should be allowed to have a little more free speech or maybe a little less. Can’t just let us exercise our First Amendment rights and be done with. No, that would be too easy.

During the 60 days the FCC wants broadcasters to fill out all kinds of forms documenting the effects of the gag removal. Free speakers will have to keep a record of how many complaints they received during the 60-​day period, how much editorializing they did, etc., etc. Broadcasters worry that they will be under pressure to cater to FCC expectations during the 60-​day period if they hope to have the ban lifted permanently. And what kind of freedom to speak is that? Let’s hope that all ends well for our right to free speech. Let’s hope we pass the test. But this is not the kind of exam that should ever be given in a free society.

This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.

Recently I talked about how one of our Founding Fathers, James Madison, diagnosed the problem of special interests long before they became the kind of headache they are today. Madison knew how the sugar lobby would behave before there was a sugar lobby. We say special interest. Madison’s word was faction.

There are two ways to try to control “the violence of faction,” Madison explained. One is to limit the causes of faction. But you can’t stop people from having different opinions and interests and we must never stop people from expressing or acting upon those opinions and interests. Sadly, that’s what some proposals for Campaign Finance Reform threaten to do. Liberty is to faction what air is to fire, said Madison. You can’t save freedom by destroying freedom.

So instead of trying to limit the causes of special interests, we should try to limit the effects. Madison thought the Republican principles enshrined in the Constitution would go far to “secure the public good and private rights” against the dangerous effects of faction. He was right. But he didn’t realize how strong a faction politicians themselves would become, thanks to their virtually limitless hold on power.

The Founding Fathers thought about making term limits a part of the Constitution, but few people desired a political career back then. So in the end they decided it wasn’t necessary. Big mistake, as Jefferson realized at the time. Not one that’s too late to correct, though.

This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.

Is it a good thing to keep your promises especially solemn, official, public promises about very important things? Theodore Roosevelt, our 26th President, thought so. His example is a lesson for the politicians of today.

Before Franklin Roosevelt came along in 1932, all American presidents had followed George Washington’s lead to serve only two terms. After two terms as President, Washington believed it important to turn power over to another citizen. Teddy Roosevelt, in his autobiography, recalled that during the 1904 presidential campaign his opponents had criticized his, “supposed personal ambition and intention to use the office of President to perpetuate myself in power.” So once he was elected he made the following promise to help unite the country: “The wise custom which limits the President to two terms regards the substance and not the form, and under no circumstances will I be a candidate for or accept another nomination.”

Teddy enjoyed being President and came to regret his commitment to step down after one term. But as 1908 rolled around, he followed through and stepped down from office. Like the vast majority of today’s self-​limiters, he kept his word. He demonstrated integrity. He proved the cynics wrong. Teddy wanted to stay president but, even more, he wanted to be a man of honor. That’s a lesson for all ages.

This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.

Hey, I thought Chad was a country in Africa. But thanks to the razor-​close presidential election, now I know what a chad really is: that little circle or square of paper that may or may not fall out of a ballot when a voter punches it.

With the presidential race so close, every chad that floated to the floor in Florida was the subject of intense scrutiny, debate, and national angst. The races weren’t so close in those 67 House districts where congressional incumbents had no challengers this year. And indeed, most incumbents had no problem snagging reelection, thanks to the overwhelming taxpayer-​funded advantages of incumbency.

Incumbents won 98.5 percent of the time. It’s a shame. Elections should be competitive. They should involve real choices and chances. Is there any way to achieve greater competition? How about term limits? At the end of your three terms in the House or two in the Senate, you step down and give other citizens a chance to govern. Just like eleven congressmen did this year, voluntarily.

What happened in Florida is an ironic reversal of the all-​too-​common scenario of our democracy: electoral contests leeched of all competitiveness, so lopsided it’s hardly worth bothering to count the ballots, let alone the chads.

The good thing about term limits is that they will help make every chad count on a regular basis, not just every couple hundred years.

This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.

America is a place where if you work hard enough anything you can dream can happen. Well, thanks in part to term limits.

Take the story of Phillip Brutus. Many years ago this Haitian immigrant was a part-​time janitor at a law firm. While emptying the trash one day, he overheard the senior partner quizzing junior lawyers on Latin legal terms. When the junior lawyers were stumped, Brutus spoke up with the correct answer. In that room full of raised eyebrows and jaws dropped wide open, he decided to become a lawyer.

After years of poverty and sacrifice, Brutus earned his law degree and opened up a practice. Then he dreamed of serving his community in the state legislature. In Florida, incumbency effectively blocked new people. Most incumbent legislators didn’t face any competition at all.

Phillip’s challenge of a powerful incumbent went the way of virtually all such challenges: he lost. Then Florida’s term limits law took effect and all that changed. Suddenly there were more candidates running then you could shake a stick at. Brutus sought an open seat where there was no entrenched incumbent and he won becoming the first Haitian-​American elected to Florida’s Legislature.

When incumbents can no longer monopolize our politics, voters get real choices and anything can happen. Our economy has long been open to those who work hardest and best serve their customers. Shouldn’t our political process work this way, too? With term limits it does.

This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.