American activist and author Monica Lewinsky has pushed for mandatory retirement ages for politicians and a prohibition on presidential self-pardons.
On Monday, November 27, Vanity Fair published an editorial piece in which the former White House intern called for those kinds of measures. Lewinsky said that current debates over whether the 14th Amendment disqualified anybody who participated in an uprising from holding public office served as inspiration for her column.
US Needs Constitutional Reform
Days earlier, Donald Trump had filed an appeal of a Colorado court verdict that ruled the former United States president had participated in insurrection via his instigation of his supporters' assault on January 6. Nevertheless, he would still be eligible to run for president again in 2024.
Lewinsky called it "bonkers" that the only section that addresses the disqualification of a candidate for such conduct is the 14th Amendment, which is otherwise recognized for offering equal protection under the law to all persons inside the US.
"Why don't we have more protections?" Lewinsky said in her article published on Monday, in which she referred to herself as a "constitutional nerd" and said that she had begun studying various amendments. She then discovered that Congress amended the constitution every 10 to 20 years. This led her to conclude: "It's time. We are overdue for some constitutional upgrades."
Changes Proposed by Lewinsky
According to the Guardian, Lewinsky proposes six reforms in all, the most important of which is an outright prohibition on presidential self-pardons.
There are already more than 90 criminal allegations filed against Trump, including conspiring to steal the 2020 election he lost to Joe Biden, keeping government secrets after leaving office, and paying porn actress Stormy Daniels to keep quiet. Even if Trump has previously been convicted of crimes and re-elected, he might theoretically pardon himself.
"For the head of the executive branch, there should not be a 'get out of jail free' card," she pointed out.
Term limits and retirement ages for elected officials are discussed later in Lewinsky's article. She backed up her claim by pointing out that the US House members, senators, and the president must all be at least 25 years old, 30 years old, and 35 years old, respectively.
She said there is a tipping point for elected leaders when mental calcification and cultural deafness threaten to overwhelm even the most impressive credentials.
Other changes Lewinsky proposed would get rid of the electoral college system, which decides presidential elections instead of a public vote, and protect women's reproductive rights again after the US Supreme Court removed Roe v. Wade in 2022.
