Does money in politics subvert our precious democracy?
Would you pay $1.00 per month to get rid of PACs, super PACs and the ungodly amount of money being funneled into federal political campaigns?
It is estimated that more than $6 billion will be spent in the 2012 election. Outrageous! The cost of elections has spun out of control and must be reined in.
Money is not the root of all evil, but its corrosive influence was evident in the 2010 elections; a malignancy that will be even more destructive in this electoral cycle.
Though money in politics was a problem long before the Citizens United ruling, the Supreme Court's 5-4 decision desecrated the 1st Amendment and is infecting our democratic elections -- the cornerstone of a healthy, vibrant democracy.
So how can we reverse the Supreme Court's mistake and get money out of politics?
We, 'the people,' can overpower the Supreme Court, get under their black robes -- make Citizens United moot -- with the Power of One!
We can end money's destructive power and return the vote, and the outcome of elections, to us.
Nearly two years ago a friend, Matt Giorgi, came to me with an idea to publicly fund all federal elections -- to essentially take all private money out of politics, thus eliminating the malicious intent of groups like Citizens United.
Formulating a plan, we realized that to move forward it was imperative to agree that money is not speech and corporations are not people. To be clear, Citizens United was not a group of citizens, but a few wealthy and vindictive individuals bent on subverting Hillary Clinton's run for the democratic nomination.
The Citizens United ruling overturned a century of election law thus making the Supreme's ruling even more injurious to our democracy. But it helped spotlight the need to move aggressively toward publicly funded elections and eliminate the court's influence.
Matt's idea will cleanse national elections and better serve the public interest.
It's the Power of One; the power of a single dollar to return the vote to 'the people.' A single dollar spreading the cost of fair and equitable elections to the greatest number of citizens ever. A single dollar to neutralize the deleterious grip money has on politics and elections.
The mandate of a single dollar, each month, from every eligible voter's paycheck would create a national election fund to facilitate all federal elections. Twelve dollars a year. A relatively painless way to clean up our elections and politics as we know it.
This fund would fall under the purview of the Federal Election Commission. They would oversee the implementation and execution of the Twenty-eighth Amendment which establishes new rules and creates a fair election process centered around the extraction of all private money from all national politics and elections. The agency will be streamlined to administer, regulate, improve, and enforce the new rules under well defined parameters.
A program like the Power of One would establish a sense of ownership and mutualism, increase voter participation, and encourage greater participation of qualified individuals who want to serve the public and the public interest but have been excluded from running for office by the restrictive cost of elections.
The mandate would generate $2.8 billion each year with minimal financial imposition to the American people. Money collected would be sufficient to fund all national races and administer the Federal Election Commission.
By publicly funding these elections the 28th Amendment would regulate the signature requirements, length of campaigns, distribution of funds, reporting, accounting, and transparency.
The mood of the nation is changing evidenced by Congress' approval rating, which has fallen to a meager 10 percent. The general public is not happy with the job their congressional members are doing, with the performance of the current administration, the weakness of the Republican presidential candidates, or the corruption money has created in our government.
It's time to get the money out of politics.
Although the Power of One may not be the whole answer, the ideas contained in the proposal, are a great start. They can be easily incorporated or aligned with other projects to end the pervasive corruption of money. No matter which plan emerges it is imperative that something be done.
The Power of One will put an end to the wanton corruption in politics!
Call Congress today and insist that your congressional members support a 28th Amendment -- (202) 224-2131 to contact your Representative or Senator. Tell them how you feel about the corruption in politics and why you want to get the money out.
Let us know your feelings also -- take a quick 5 question poll about the Power of One at Survcast.
Every major change in our country has started in the streets with a frustrated citizenry. Government only acts in our best interest when it's pushed. The time for the 28th Amendment has come.
And you can make it happen!