Goodlatte on why he didn't keep word on term limits

U.S. Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-6th, emphasized his experience and the value of his seniority to 6th District voters and underlined the importance of checking executive branch power in an interview at The News Leader office Tuesday.

When voters in Virginia's 6th District head to the polls on Nov. 8, they'll have the chance to reelect Goodlatte for a 13th term and he said he feels he's had so much success with Valley voters because they know he reflects their conservative values, fighting for a decentralized government.

"They know that I work for them, day in and day out and I listen to them," he said.

He said over his 23 years in office thousands of constituents across the Valley have reached out to him and that he helps them with their problems — "they know that I get things done for them."

Goodlatte said his seniority and power from his Committee on the Judiciary chairmanship and previously his Agriculture Committee chairmanship amount to a great force to the people of the 6th District, as they give him the opportunity to make decisions that reflect their values and views and that this doesn't conflict with national politics, rather they work "hand in hand" together.

"If you're in a position to move legislation that is of importance to your constituents, that's an important and valuable thing for them," he said.

Goodlatte got to have this seniority in Congress by abandoning the term limits he placed on himself when he originally ran in 1992 — he said when he got to Congress he realized "if only the people who believed in term limits kept term limits, then the people who don't support term limits would have all the seniority and all of the power in the Congress."

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"I think most people understand that term limits only work effectively if they apply equally to everyone," he said.

Donald Trump has endorsed term limits in his run for the presidency, but Goodlatte said he continues to run because he feels his constituents will continue to benefit from his presence in Congress.

He said he doesn't think Republicans will lose their majority in the U.S. House of Representatives, but that if Hillary Clinton is elected, it will be important to be a check against the "liberal leftward march of the federal bureaucracy and higher spending."

​He's been disappointed with President Obama's lack of "respect for the rule of law" and said Obama has abused his executive powers with comments like when he said, "but if Congress won’t act soon to protect future generations, I will," during his 2016 State of the Union address.

"My immediate reaction was well, 'by what authority?'" Goodlatte said. "Unfortunately a number of members of his own party stood up and gave him a standing ovation when he said, 'I'm going to take your powers that you have to legislate the Congress away from you if you don't do things I want you to.' That's not how representative democracy works."

Goodlatte said he still feels like he's been very productive while still checking the executive branch, having 48 bills signed into law under Obama, but that he wants "a president who will have greater respect for the rule of law, greater respect for working with the Congress, greater respect for the separation of powers."

Voters will decide if he gets his wish on Nov. 8, though Goodlatte said "there's no way to know for sure" when asked if he thought the election was rigged.

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