In the News, canvassing and volunteering update, and a little bit on term limits

We are once again in the News! The Portland Press Herald ran an article about the signs you can sit on, in which everyone except me stubbornly refers to them as benches. But hey, just because it’s shaped like a giraffe and painted like a giraffe doesn’t make it not a sign!

I was in Portland this evening to canvass, and term limits came up a lot. I think two terms is enough at one go for any person to be in Congress, whether they are a senator (6 year term) or a representative (2 year term). I also respect that sometimes when someone does a good job it can be important to hire them again, so in my mind they’d be allowed to run again after a term off. This term off would allow members of Congress to stay close with the states they live in and represent, and also keep in touch with how their communities are doing and what it feels like to need the things that their communities need.

There are three quarters of a million people in a US congressional district, and the idea that only one of them could be capable of representing us at any given instant is bizarre to me, as it’s one that we disprove every single time a politician retires and is instantly replaced by someone adequate. I’m a big believer in sharing, and can only hope that when my own children (should I be lucky enough to have any) are the age a normal member of Congress is now, they remember that sharing is for the responsibilities of our communities as well as the rewards.

In any case, I had an excellent time in Portland, picked up two new volunteers to help circulate petitions this weekend (see? sharing!) and gathered another 50 or so signatures (after working a 10 hour day, also, thank you to the folks who signed for sharing the work of putting me on the ballot!), so I’m going to publish this post early and reward myself with possibly a sixth hour of sleep.

As always anyone willing to join this little friendly network of folks trying to make the world better by getting this conversation on the ballot where we can all vote for it, email tristramforcongress@gmail.com! It takes 2,000 signatures for a non-party candidate to get on the ballot, so offering to let your friends and neighbors sign nomination petitions with you is the only way to let your friends and neighbors have the option of voting for me in the fall. Imagine the satisfaction of looking at a ballot and knowing that someone on it is there because you put them there. I’ve had that satisfaction before, and with a little elbow grease we could all share it this November.