Thursday morning's Wall Street Journal reported:
Industries from health care to agribusiness to mining that stand to lose under President Barack Obama's policy agenda are ramping up lobbying campaigns to derail or modify his plans.
... Opinion polls indicate that Mr. Obama's broad goals enjoy popular support. But crucial details of the president's agenda will be decided in coming months by close-in legislative fighting, where big industries and the members of Congress that support them have plenty of clout.
While lobbying alone is not evil, the combination of special interest lobbyists plus their ability to legally funnel millions into political campaigns is toxic. Members of Congress become dependent upon the lobbyists, and lobbyists sell the clout this dependency creates.
Joe Trippi recently explained more:
Right now, millions in campaign contributions coupled with millions spent on lobbying can result in billions worth of payback for special interests. It's all legal.
...But there are some big losers in that equation: The public. The American people have lost faith in a system dominated by money. We don't have lobbyists looking out for the public good. And when non-profit groups do send liaisons to congressional offices, they don't have the same clout as a lobbyist who can put together a $50,000 fundraiser later that evening.
The public faces a choice: do we continue playing a rigged game where the voices of special interests outweigh the voices of regular people or do we fundamentally change the game?
I know my answer to that question.
Change Congress, the anti-corruption group I formed with Joe Trippi, has already mobilized thousands of people across the nation in support of a political "donor strike" where we pledge not to give politicians a penny more unless they support bipartisan legislation that would fundamentally reform the way congressional campaigns are funded.
If you're ready to change the system, please join the donor strike today.
Specifically, we're advocating for the Durbin-Specter plan, which combines public financing with Obama-style small dollar contributions. It would liberate politicians from spending huge portions of their day courting $2,400 special-interest checks and instead allow them to court support from regular people.
This model has already worked on the state level, and it garners nearly 70% in national polls. It's also the essence of fiscal responsibility - according to the conservative Cato Institute, the money saved by politicians being free to slash corporate welfare would fund over half-a-century of public funding and save taxpayers billions per year.
We all have our favorite issues. Mine is global warming. Yours may be health care. But progress will be blocked on all of these issues until we change the game. Unfortunately, politicians won't make reform a priority unless we demand it in stark terms.
So far, over $850,000 has been withheld in the donor strike by about 7,000 people (based on last cycle's contributions). Dianne Feinstein alone has lost over $200,000. When a politician puts their name on the Durbin-Specter bill, they're in the clear.
Together, we can Change Congress.
This is typical hysteria and hyperbole from Lessig - "oh no, the special interests are coming! we have to stop letting them bribe Congress..."
Sheer fantasy, Most elected officials vote the way they do because they believe it's the best policy, in the best interest of the constituents, or they're afraid they'll be voted out by the electorate if they don't vote a certain way - all of which are pretty much the way we should expect them to vote if they're honest, in other words.
No matter the source of their funding, ALL politicians have to go to the voters and explain how they'll vote or why they voted a particular way. The public can always vote them out if they don't like it.
The two states that have the welfare-for-politicians schemes touted here are hardly exemplars of "good government." Arizona is a fiscal basketcase, with the largest budget deficit in the country by percentage. Maine has the highest tax burden in the country, and their "universal health care" program (Dirigo) has imploded.
This is the "reform" that will "change the game" if enacted? Please.
Sean Parnell
President
Center for Competitive Politics
http://www.campaignfreedom.org
sparnell@campaignfreedom.org
Surely there must be another approach that doesn't diminish support for trustworthy candidates.
Lobbying has always struck me as plain old bribery and I never understood why it was allowed.
Sean Parnell
President
Center for Competitive Politics
http://www.campaignfreedom.org
sparnell@campaignfreedom.org
Easier said than done, I know, but at least we can start with a vision.
Listen to Jeff Madrick on the economic crisis and how corporate "financialization" has ruined America. He's a guest on Doug's show here: http://www.kpfa.org/archive/id/48787
This is one of the most lucid explanations of how our economy has been corrupted by corporate shenanigans. Madrick has some really good ideas about what we can do to help ourselves going forward.
I disagree. There are laws that make lobbying legal, because otherwise it would treason.
But there is a need for voters to find a place in the system. Obama can't do it all alone.
Sean Parnell
President
Center for Competitive Politics
http://www.campaignfreedom.org
sparnell@campaignfreedom.org
One would hope these "special interests" could at least have the decency to lay off for a year or so, and realize the country is in jeopardy and their goodies and wish lists are secondary, tertiary, not important now in the least.
One would hope.
http://TheSnarkingLot.blogspot.com
Nothing trumps the almighty dollar to these corporations. Not human life. Not the environment. Not the future.
Afterall, they don't have children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, neighbors, etc. that have to live in the consequences of their actions.
Special interests thrive in darkness and the undercover side of
candidates who talk about family values while they take thousands from pornographers , casinos and big oil. People who want to be lied to with sweet words are not intelligent enough to see beyond them and they definitely aren't interested in having to do their homework before voting.
That applies to both Democrats and Republicans, especially in the election of 2008...
The lobbying that is done now, does NOTHING to help the American people. All is does is prompt the corporations and their needs not America's needs.
OUTLAW LOBBYISTS.
I think some people call the supression of political speech "fascism" (or at least a key component of fascism), but it's a free country so I guess you can advocate what you want.
Sean Parnell
President
Center for Competitive Politics
http://www.campaignfreedom.org
sparnell@campaignfreedom.org
-- Article 2, Section 4
I have signed up.
true to Obama's campaign promises, he can only lead so much with regards to the special interest groups and lobbyists, the time has come, especially NOW for the American People to rise up and fight back....YES WE CAN!...YES WE WILL!