I have written several articles on postings related to Reform in America. A list of links have been provided at bottom of this article for your convenience. This article will, however address additional areas rife for reform.
Note: This plan will probably be laughed at and scoffed at, but it cannot be denied that there is a need for reform. Hopefully this rather amateurish plan will foster some interest in the appropriate forums. This plan of reform is for the Federal Government and the Court System.
COURT
There are entirely too may levels or the convicted criminal. An individual with money can keep his case in the court for years. People are on death row for up to 10 years. This is ludicrous as well as costly. My belief is that one appeal is sufficient, provided it is one that is guaranteed to be fair and impartial. My plan is a simple one. Set up a system of District Appellate courts based on population. Between 10-20 courts ( if this number it too small, it could be increased. These courts would handle all criminal appeals. A criminal convicted of a crime could chose any one of these District Courts for his appeal. This would ensure that he would get a fair trial. Also there needs to be a time limit set for the appeal. This could be worked out later, but I feel that 1 to 2 years should be sufficient. This goes the same for death row inmates. With only one appeal per convicted criminal there will be fewer cases and less of a glut in the court system. There will be no longer a stay of execution. The State Governor should not have this power. By wielding this power, he is saying that he is above the law. The Supreme Court System will stay in place and will function as normal. But they will no longer hear criminal appeals. They will be concerned with Constitutional Cases and Cases involving the Rights of the People. Special cases can however be referred to the Supreme Court by the District Appellate Courts.
LEGISLATURE
The time of two houses is past, we need just one house. The name for this house can be chosen, A suggested name might be the House of the People. Each state will have between 1 and 4 seats in this house. This will insure that one or two states will not be able to sway the decision of the house. However the more populated states will still get credit for having a larger population. The term will be set at 4 years. Also there will be a limit of terms that can be served in the politicians life time (5 terms or no more than 20 years). This will insure that politicians will not become entrenched in the house , and eventually develop the God Complex. It will also cut down on graft and corruption. There will be an official elected by the people for the chief position of the House. Much as the President will be elected. This individual will act as the tie-breaking vote. He will also be there to make sure that filibustering and other stalling tactics are not used. There will be a time limit to speeches. A novel concept, but this house will be here to work and actually accomplish something. I am not familiar enough with politics to work out all the finer details. Having one House and fewer politicians will save millions of dollars in government spending.
EXECUTIVE
The Executive Branch needs a little reform as well. The areas that need to be addressed are as follows: the way the President is elected, the term of office, the number of terms and the role of the Vice-President in the government. The Electoral College needs to be put to rest. The President must be elected by a majority vote, not by the antiquated Electoral College. The President should serve one 6 year term only. This will make the President more effective. He will not have to worry about spending his last year of his first term running for office. The extended term will allow him to develop a continuity in his Presidency. He will be able to accomplish more, because the Legislative Branch will be more stream lined and efficient. The role of the vice-President will be changed. He will no longer reside over the Senate or any Legislative House. He will play an integral part in the Executive Branch. This will force the Presidential Hopeful running for office to choose an individual he can work with, instead of one that is just popular. When the President is away on official business, the Vice-President will head the Cabinet meetings .When the President is at the White House, he will have the role of a Senior Cabinet Member. An excellent position for him would be to head a Cabinet Position over-seeing Law Enforcement in the United States. He could keep an eye on the Law enforcement departments, FBI and so on. This is only a suggestion. But one thing is certain, the Vice President should play a greater role in the running of the government.
Note: I am sending this letter only as a concerned citizen. I am not involved in any kind of communist or socialist plan to over turn the government. I love living in the United States, but I feel that the government could work more efficiently and with less waste. I hope this letter is not just laughed at or dismissed as the ravings of a lunatic, but serves as a starting place for reform.
This letter was presented to A Florida congressman back In 1999. I firmly believe our country would be in a lot better shape if some of these changes were made. The Congressman said that my proposals were interesting, but just too radical. I am posting these proposals now, because I am sure we can all agree now is the time for a change.
Articles on Reform
https://common-sense-in-america.com/2020/08/12/postal-service-reform/