Last June, when Senator Robert Byrd from West Virginia passed away at the age of 92, after 6 years in Congress and 58 (!) years in the U.S. Senate, he was laid to rest with all honors — and nobody seemed to blink an eye.

It is safe to say that Americans generally seem rather angry and frustrated with their elected officials these days. On the other hand, I am always perplexed at the high rate at which incumbents keep getting reelected over and over again.

Since 1964, the average rate of re-election has been 93.3 percent for members of the House, and 81.6 percent for members of the Senate. In the last decade, the rate of re-election has even been rather high for Congressmen: 96%!

The American Founding Fathers surely did not anticipate today’s situation. They never intended to set up permanent houses of parliamentary government in Washington D.C., nor did it occur to them that someone would be able to make a career out of running for public office for most of his life. Most of the Founders were deeply suspicious of representatives staying in their positions for decade after decade. Rather, the Founders objected to the idea of a ruling class, which they knew would eventually maneuver itself into positions where they would be exempt from laws and programs imposed on others, where they would be shielded from the effects of their policies, and where they would be receiving perks and a better life simply because they were in government.

And yet, I find it vexing that the Founders failed to establish term limits or some other mechanism to encourage rotation.

So today, there are no term limits for federal U.S. representatives. Not few of them remain in their positions until death, or until senility or physical ailments prevent basic bodily functions.

Despite all the much discussed public anger showing up in polls, this year does not appear unusual at all. So far, 282 federal incumbents have been up for reelection. Only six of them have lost their seats (two senators and four congressmen). That’s a dismissal rate of only 2% over the 6-year terms of office for senators and the 2-year terms for congressmen.

Most of us can only dream of this kind of job security (which also happens to come with full pension, health care and other benefits).

Reinhard Kargl

Journalist and media professional currently based in Los Angeles, California. Focusing on science and technology.