BETTENDORF, Iowa, Nov. 15 (UPI) -- Republican presidential hopeful Rick Perry said Tuesday he wants congressional salaries halved and lifetime judgeships ended in an overhaul of Washington.
"I do not believe Washington needs a new coat of paint, it needs a complete overhaul. We need to uproot, tear down and rebuild Washington, D.C., and our federal institutions," the Texas governor said in remarks distributed before a speech in Bettendorf, Iowa.
Perry advocated a smaller government spending 18 percent of the gross domestic product in order to balance the budget by 2010. He proposed capping Supreme Court and other unelected federal judge terms.
"Too many federal judges rule with impunity from the bench, and those who legislate from the bench should not be entitled to lifetime abuse of their judicial authority," he said.
Under his plan, the nine Supreme Court justices would each serve 18-year terms, and one justice would be replaced every other year based on seniority.
If elected president, Perry would cut congressional pay in half and repeal the rule preventing members of Congress from holding jobs in their hometowns. That pay would further be cut in half and a federal hiring freeze would be implemented if Congress fails to propose a long-term balanced budget.
