Congress is crushing young Americans with future debt. Here's how they can fight back.

Imagine the paradigm shift if more young people became involved in government. More members of Congress would own a stake in the country’s future and be able to hamper the government’s short-sighted addiction to deficit spending.

Even though most people under 30 are oblivious to the looming economic hazard of the national debt, younger representatives would at least have stronger incentives to leave less debt for their own generation to pay off.

Young candidates would be able to better communicate with fellow young people, inspiring the youth to rally behind entitlement reform and stop Generation “Y” from becoming Generation “Why Us.”

A powerful symbol

Obviously, lowering the age requirement alone is no panacea. It won’t solve the debt crisis overnight. It would, however, be a powerful symbol that gives voters more choices.

There’s no guarantee a single person under 25 would be elected. If younger candidates can’t draw votes, so be it. The decision rests with the people.

Before young candidates ever appear on the ballot, the American people must be convinced that the founding fathers – who got most things right – were wrong on this restriction. Our founders set a minimum age of 25 for the House and 30 for the Senate, believing our legislators need extensive life experience to run the country.

But unfortunately, the politicians with tremendous life experience set us on this path to financial ruin. When politicians age, they owe more payoffs to the special interests funding their campaigns. As apparent by the $13 trillion debt, the old and entrenched Capitol leadership fostered a vacuum of responsibility.

They’ve passed the buck to the next generations.

Young people must serve

If Congress continues neglecting the future, the future should stop neglecting Congress. Young people must demand their rights to serve in government.

Don’t discount the ability of young people to change American laws and attitudes. Student activists in the early 1970s helped fuel the drive for the 26th Amendment, which extended the right to vote to those as young as 18.

Using the same amendment process – one of our Constitution’s greatest tools – America has a shot to make our union a little “more perfect.” Lowering the age requirement doesn’t guarantee any miracles, but a strong youth voice can only help build our nation a brighter tomorrow.

Ron Meyer, a senior at Principia College, writes for Human Events and the Daily Caller. He hosts “We the People Internet Radio Show” and has written commentary for the Santa Barbara News-Press, AOL News, and the Principia Pilot.

Previous

1 | 2