We the People Lifetime Lobbying Ban: Why Term Limits Fail & the Real Fix

Jeremy Black
Nov 17, 2025
5 min read

Updated: Dec 14, 2025

By Jeremy Black

November 17th, 2025

Lifetime Lobbying Ban: Why Term Limits for Congress Will Never Work, And the One Rule That Actually Will.

Everyone screams “Term limits! Term limits!” every time Congress screws us again.

And they should be furious.

The average member of Congress now stays in office more than 9 years. Some, like Chuck Schumer (in since 1999), Mitch McConnell (1985), or Nancy Pelosi (1987), have been there decades. Many literally die in office, or shortly after, far richer than when they arrived on a $174,000 salary.

But here’s the dirty little secret the Swamp will never tell you:

Term limits alone fix absolutely nothing.

Kick out a 30-year incumbent and the lobbyists, defense contractors, Big Pharma, and Wall Street simply buys the fresh face who replaces them. Same money. Same influence. Different nameplate on the door.

I’ve read every serious term-limits proposal since the 1994 Contract with America. They all fail for the exact same reason: they treat the symptom (long tenure) instead of the disease (elite money capture).

There is precisely one rule, one single sentence, that permanently breaks the corruption cycle, ends the revolving door, and actually drains the swamp.

And the best part? It doesn’t require a constitutional amendment, 38 state legislatures, or waiting ten years for incumbents to finally cycle out.

The Nuclear Option Washington Fears Most: A Lifetime Lobbying Ban for Former Members of Congress.

Ban every former Senator and Representative from ever registering as a lobbyist or working for any company that lobbies Congress, for life.

That’s it.

One sentence added to the House and Senate ethics rules (or passed as a simple statute) ends the game forever.

No more voting for a $886 billion defense bill and then “retiring” to a seven-figure job at Raytheon or Lockheed Martin two years later.

No more writing prescription-drug laws and then pocketing millions from Pfizer and Moderna as a “strategic consultant” advisor.

No more “consulting” gigs, “senior policy” roles, or shady family-member pass-throughs that are nothing but legalized bribery.

When the guaranteed golden parachute disappears, the corrupt money disappears with it.

Why This Works When Term Limits Fail

Term limits just speed up the revolving door. A lifetime lobbying ban slams it shut and welds it closed.

Right now, the entire incentive structure of Congress is built around the future lobbying payday. Members don’t vote for what’s best for their constituents, they vote for whatever maximizes their future K-Street income.

Want to know why we can’t pass serious drug-price transparency in healthcare? Because dozens of former members make millions “advising” the hospital and insurance industries.
Wonder why we keep sending hundreds of billions to defense contractors for weapons systems the Pentagon doesn’t even want? Because 80% of retiring four-star generals and top defense officials go straight to those same contractors, and many former members do too.
Curious why both parties protect Big Tech monopolies? Because Silicon Valley has hired over 300 former members of Congress and high-level staffers.

A lifetime ban destroys that business model overnight.

Suddenly, the only way for a politician to get rich is the old-fashioned way: marry money or invent something useful. Not by selling out the American people.

This Isn’t Radical, It’s Rare Sense

Thirteen states already ban former state legislators from lobbying for at least one or two years. Federal judges are banned for life from practicing before the Supreme Court. Former presidents get Secret Service protection but are barred from certain business dealings.

Yet the people who actually write our laws face virtually no post-service restrictions.

That’s insane.

How We Actually Get It Done (No Amendment Needed)

This can be accomplished in three realistic ways, none of which require 38 states or two-thirds of Congress:

Congress passes it as a statute (yes, the honest ones could force a vote).
The House and Senate unilaterally add the rule to their own ethics manuals (they have that power today).
We make it a litmus test: every candidate in 2026 and 2028 must publicly pledge to co-sponsor and vote for the “Clean Slate Act, Lifetime Lobbying Ban.”

Once enough members are elected on that pledge, the bill passes in a single afternoon.

And because it only affects members after they leave office, current members can claim “it doesn’t apply to me” ,removing their personal excuse to vote no.

Game over.

Real-World Examples That Make People’s Blood Boil

Here are just a few of the hundreds of blatant examples that prove the revolving door is the real problem:

Billy Tauzin (R-LA) chaired the committee that wrote Medicare Part D (the massive prescription-drug giveaway). 18 months after the bill passed, he resigned from Congress and took a $2 million-a-year job as head lobbyist for Big Pharma.
Tom Daschle (former Senate Majority Leader) made millions lobbying for health-insurance companies after blocking real healthcare reform.
Chris Dodd (D-CT), author of the Dodd-Frank banking bill, now lobbies for… Hollywood and the big banks.
Over 50% of retiring senators and about 40% of retiring House members from the last five Congresses went straight to K-Street or corporate-board lobbying jobs.

These aren’t anomalies, they’re the business model.

What the Polls Actually Say (People Already Agree With You)

87% of Americans (including 89% of Republicans and 85% of Democrats) support a lifetime lobbying ban on former members of Congress (2024 Pew & Convention of States poll.
Only 9% of Americans approve of Congress, yet incumbents keep winning because the money keeps flowing.
Term limits poll well (around 75–80%), but a lifetime lobbying ban polls even higher once people hear both options side-by-side.

The people are already want this. Washington is simply ignoring us.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will this violate “free speech”? No. Lobbying is a job, not speech. We already ban former generals from working for defense contractors for a cooling-off period. Extending that principle to the people who actually wrote the laws is common sense.

What about staffers? Start with members. Once members are banned for life, the value of senior staff drops dramatically, most of their “worth” on K-Street is access to their old boss.

Won’t they just find loopholes? Make the ban cover any job (paid or unpaid) with a company or trade association that lobbies Congress. Close the “consultant” and “advisor” loopholes on day one.

Real Leadership Is Already Emerging

President Trump endorsed a lifetime lobbying ban for former members of Congress during the 2024 campaign. Several America First candidates in 2024 and 2025 specials have made it part of their platform.

But we can’t wait for politicians to save us from politicians.

This is a We the People movement.

That’s why the core reform developed from my research for my book Rare Sense to Save America is exactly this: a permanent, lifetime lobbying ban on all former members of Congress.

If we fix the money, everything else, borders, debt, crime, education, war, becomes fixable.

Want the full step-by-step plan for this reform and 8 other pillars that actually save the republic?

→ Grab Rare Sense to Save America on Amazon right now: https://a.co/d/dmxAYjK

Or join the thousands of patriots already organizing at Rare Sense America. Become a member today and add your voice to the only movement that puts citizens in charge again.

We the People still run this country.

It’s time we started acting like it.

We made it simple to join the fight and demand the lifetime lobbying ban, just simply need to send a text. For a detailed review of the lifetime lobbying ban check our our Pillar 1-Lifetime Lobbying Ban:https://www.raresenseamerica.com/we-the-people-lifetime-lobbying-ban

To easily demand it check our our FIGHT page at https://www.raresenseamerica.com/we-the-people-fight

Check out the other pillars and stay in the fight: