Spent lots of time this week breezing down the West Coast and talking to SEIU members in Seattle, Portland, and San Francisco. I saw firsthand their enormous participation in this year's election - our union's greatest mid-term effort ever.
In our union we have adopted a more independent view of politics. SEIU members too often don't like their choices; they don't feel they have candidates to vote for who understand how hard it is when seven of 10 middle-class Americans say they are living paycheck-to-paycheck, have negative savings, and are one illness away from economic disaster.
I talked with some state employees who just negotiated a contract, but like too many Americans their raises are offset to some extent by ever-increasing health care costs.
I write in my book, A Country That Works, that too often I am confused about whether I am I a union leader or ATM machine, because of the calls I receive from politicians who say, "I need your help" (translation "money"), and rarely, "I need your ideas."
And politicians have to be accountable to the working families that put them office. They can't be after our votes the day before the election and after our throats the day after.
Electing candidates who care about working people is so important to the well-being of SEIU members, but we need to change the system so everyday Americans have a fighting chance.
Public financing of all elections would be huge. If a politician tells you that money does not buy influence or access, don't believe it. The members of our union are very involved in helping candidates win elections for just that reason - it's the way janitors and security officers, nurses and other health professionals, homecare and childcare workers, and public employees gain a foothold in the system. They pool their small voices, which politicians don't hear, to create one big voice, which politicians can't ignore.
You don't have to believe me, just ask Jack Abramoff and all his associates. Ask the Congressional family members who are "lobbying" their father or husband for special earmarks (funding for pet projects in their district), or talk to all the "K Street" lobbyists. Money matters and it distorts decision-making and our democracy.
There are lots of ways to change the system to make it work better for everyone. Why not universal voter registration? How about the Australian model of mandatory voting with fines for those who choose not to participate? What if we had "fusion" as we used to have in virtually every state, which allows multiple parties to run a single candidate, giving more influence to third-parties? Can we figure out internet voting and/or universal vote by mail? And I know this is controversial, but let's consider federal term limits of 12 or 16 years so we get fresh ideas and break up the morass of incumbency and the monopoly of Congressional power and seniority.
Those are just ideas, but we need to re-invigorate our democracy, because people our expressing their disgust and alienation by staying home. I am so proud to see our members so active this year - they understand that changing America requires leadership.
If only we had more of it from our elected officials.