How to fix Congress: The Warren Buffett proposal

CORRECTION:  The only part of the statement below that Warren Buffett made was the first.  The rest of it was invented by an unknown person.  I like all of those ideas too, but some of them are in fact misleading.  The Constitution is not amended by popular petition. [1/21/12]


Below is a statement that has been circulating, about how to fix the logjam in Congress.  The proposal was made by Warren Buffett.  It was first expressed in a recent interview with CNBC, and now is being circulated in the form of a potential amendment to the Constitution.  I don’t know if this is the solution, but I am fed up with the way things are done in Washington, and I believe that most Americans are too, and from all over of the political spectrum.  So a move to add an amendment to the Constitution to solve some the problem seems ever more appealing.  
What do you think?  

"I could end the deficit in 5 minutes," Buffett told CNBC. "You just pass a law that says that any time there is a deficit of more than 3% of GDP, all sitting members of Congress are ineligible for re-election. The 26th amendment (granting the right to vote for 18 year-olds) took only 3 months & 8 days to be ratified! Why? Simple! The people demanded it. That was in 1971 ... before computers, e-mail, cell phones, etc. Of the 27 amendments to the Constitution, seven (7) took 1 year or less to become the law of the land ... all because of public pressure.   

Warren Buffet is asking each addressee to forward this email to a minimum of twenty people on their address list; in turn ask each of those to do likewise. In three days, most people in The United States of America will have the message. This is one idea that really should be passed around. *Congressional Reform Act of 2011*   

1. No Tenure / No Pension. A Congressman collects a salary while in office and receives no pay when they are out of office.  

2. Congress (past, present & future) participates in Social Security. All funds in the Congressional retirement fund move to the Social Security system immediately. All future funds flow into the Social Security system, and Congress participates with the American people. It may not be used for any other purpose.  

3. Congress can purchase their own retirement plan, just as all Americans do.  

4. Congress will no longer vote themselves a pay raise. Congressional pay will rise by the lower of CPI or 3%.  

5. Congress loses their current health care system and participates in the same health care system as the American people.  

6. Congress must equally abide by all laws they impose on the American people.  

7. All contracts with past and present Congressmen are void effective 1/1/12. The American people did not make this contract with Congressmen.  Congressmen made all these contracts for themselves. Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, so ours should serve their term(s), then go home and back to work.   

If each person contacts a minimum of twenty people then it will only take three days for most people (in the U.S. ) to receive the message. Maybe it is time.  THIS IS HOW YOU FIX CONGRESS!!!!! If you agree with the above, pass it on.  If not, just delete. You are one of my 20. Please keep it going.