Let’s Upgrade The Job Requirements!

Posted on by under education, History, Law and justice, Political commentary, voting rights

Back in 1787 when the Founders were drafting what would become the U.S. Constitution, the put in place very few requirements for the office of president and also for seats in the U.S. Congress.  This made sense in 1787 because few, if any, had formal college educations and given that this nation was in its infant stages, none had experience in our nascent government.  But that was 235 years ago and since that time much has changed.  As I look at some members of this, the 117th Congress, and as I look at the former president [sic], I firmly believe the time has come to update the requirements for these highest offices in the land!

Let’s take a look at those requirements.

President

Article II, Section 1, Clause 5 lays out the requirements for the office of President of the United States:

No Person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of President; neither shall any Person be eligible to that Office who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty five Years, and been fourteen Years a Resident within the United States.

That’s it … three qualifications … a natural born citizen, age 35 or older, and a resident of the U.S. for at least 14 years.

House of Representatives

Article I, Section 2 specifies the requirements for a member of the House of Representatives:

No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the Age of twenty five Years, and been seven Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen.

Senate

Article I, Section 3 defines the requirements for a member of the Senate:

No Person shall be a Senator who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty Years, and been nine Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State for which he shall be chosen.

Again, this made a good bit of sense in 1787, but today?  Not so much.  The last person who occupied the Oval Office had never even read the U.S. Constitution, had no relevant college education, no prior government experience or legal experience, unless you count his thousands of lawsuits.  How could this happen?

So, what would I add to the qualifications listed in the first two Articles of the Constitution?  For starters, I would add an educational requirement, that candidates for the presidency, vice-presidency, or Congress must have, at a minimum, a Bachelor’s degree in either law, history, or political science.  Also, I would like to see them required to pass a test on their knowledge of the U.S. Constitution.  Do you know that immigrants to this nation, in order to qualify for citizenship, must pass a civics test to evaluate their knowledge of U.S. history and government?  In essence, it is harder to become a citizen than to become president!  The oath of office for the president states:

“I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

Now, just how can you swear to preserve, protect, and defend a document you’ve never read?  C’mon, folks, the Constitution in its entirety is just under 8,000 words long.  The original, before any amendments, is 4,400 words.  This isn’t exactly War and Peace, my friends!  I have read it more than a few times, often in a single sitting!

I would require a background check and any credible accusations of sexual abuse, domestic abuse, or financial improprieties would automatically disqualify that person.

And one last thing I would like to see is a wealth cap.  I don’t want either a president or senator or representative who was born with a silver spoon in his/her mouth and has no idea what it means to have to budget, to sometimes have to forego a purchase because money is tight.  I don’t want someone sitting in Washington with millions … or billions … of dollars to his name that allow him to live in an Ivory Tower so high up that he/she does not even see We the People.  And I don’t want a president or member of Congress who can buy his/her seat, nor do I want one so obsessed with money that they are willing to sell their future votes to the highest bidder for campaign donations. The Citizens United v FEC decision destroyed the integrity of politicians in this nation, and I would love to see it overturned, but we all know it won’t happen.

If my suggestions had been implemented some time ago, we would not have such corrupt and trashy people in our Congress today as Margie Greene, Lauren Boebert, Matt Gaetz, Elise Stefanik, Madison Cawthorn and more.  The Constitution was always intended to grow with the nation, to be a flexible and dynamic document that would meet the needs of today but also of tomorrow.  The framers of that document would be horrified to see today’s corruption in every branch and at every level, completely disregarding the needs of the people of this nation … the people who pay their salaries, benefits, travel, and other perks.

25 thoughts on “Let’s Upgrade The Job Requirements!”

  1. Pingback: Let’s Upgrade The Job Requirements! — Filosofa’s Word – The World As It Is. Not As It Should Be

  2. Your suggestions for changes to the Constitution are simple and necessary.t hat in itself is probably enough to ensure they’ll never happen. Already the jokers and those who want to find a way to bring about the fall of Governments have found their positions and won’t willingly give them up. The downfall of your Empire will come from within I think.

    Liked by 1 person

    • Thanks, David. You’re right … if it makes sense, then it’s doomed from the start. Sigh. Yes, I figured out some time ago that external threats aren’t the biggest worry, for we will ultimately be destroyed from within. And yet this is called by some a “great nation” and the “leader of the free world”??? HAH!!!!
      Cwtch

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  3. Pingback: LET’S UPGRADE THE JOB REQUIREMENTS. |jilldennison.com | Ramblings of an Occupy Liberal

  4. I agree with you that a citizenship or civics test is a requirement and the thing about the wealth is a credible point. I’m not sure if a bachelor’s degree in either law or political science is necessary. and there are a lot of trashy people in congress. mitch mcconnel, Maxine Waters, Nancy Peloci, aoc, kevin mccarthy, roshita talibe and too many more to list. they also should not be allowed, in any capacity, to take money from corporations or special interest groups, full stop, the first time they do, they shall immediately be dispatched from the building, never to return.
    it’s about time to have the gloves come off with these members of congress, I am sick of individuals claiming to represent the people, and, when they get to the district of criminals, they only represent themselves. I would not be popular in washington DC, i can tell you that much right now, with either the left or the right.

    Liked by 1 person

    • The single biggest factor that has led to the corruption of so many in Congress is money. Citizens United only exacerbated the problem and now we have politicians literally selling their souls to the highest bidder, selling our very lives downriver.

      Liked by 1 person

  7. Every piece of software needs an update, and also all other things around the human beeings. So, why nobody has updated the constitution, and secured against a big welcome for crazy people? ;-( Do you think we ever will get an answer on this, Jill? xx Michael

    Liked by 2 people

  9. It’s enough to keep me from running for President of the USA, but not much else. But once again we run into the problem of how to impliment new requirements when you cannot even implement passing bills that Republicans don’t want, and they surely would not want new requirements.

    Liked by 3 people

    • Exactly. The people of this nation cannot agree on anything … you could put a Republican and a Democrat side by side and one would say the sun is shining and it’s a beautiful day, while the other would say he smells rain and they better get inside. No, the Republicans don’t want to have to qualify for the job, for it would be the end of the Republican Party!

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