Change Congress

Richard Burr is one of the senators who voted against the Franken Amendment. He and other members of Congress have got to wake up to the fact that most Americans don't trust them.

President Obama may have issued a private demand that groups allied with the White House stop hammering moderate Democratic Senators with health care ...

It's that time of the year again. Every quarter, just as the FEC reporting deadlines approach, politicians go on a mad scramble for last-minute donations.

Ben Nelson probably hates us right now -- or at least me. But that's OK, it was worth it. Here's what happened.

A new report that claims Nelson received $2 million from insurance and health care interests leads the public to wonder whether it is the merits or the money that is driving his decisions.

If you think special-interest influence in Congress perverts our public policy, last week saw an outrage that vindicates that belief entirely.

The American people can see through the shell game the DSCC is playing. One day of doing the right thing does little to make up for 364 days of being beholden to specials interests.

Every activist email must have a plausible "theory of change." People should see some concrete theory about why taking action could lead to a desired result.

For years, financial institutions like Bank of America and AIG donated millions to the very people who were supposed to regulate them. The result is obvious.

It is time that Congress take responsibility for the cynicism this system has produced. It is not enough for good souls to insist on their goodness. A good soul must act to change a corrupted system.

Conyers' proposed ban on "open access publishing" is the darling of the publishing industry because it would force the public to buy for-profit journals to get information that would otherwise be online for free.

Conyers is leading a proposal to forbid the government from requiring scientists who receive taxpayer funds for medical research to publish their findings openly on the Internet.

While lobbying alone is not evil, the combination of special interest lobbyists and their ability to legally funnel millions into political campaigns is toxic.

Like many decent people, Daschle got caught in a bad system that is so corrupted by money it hardly matters whether the money is from good people with good intentions or bad people with bad intentions.

Too many Americans believe money buys results in Congress -- an idea that heightens cynicism about our democracy and weakens civic engagement.

Not only are some of the most non-trusted companies in America blatantly trying to buy off Congress, but they're using our bailout money to do it. Enough!

Change Congress is bringing sexy back... to the campaign finance reform debate. The donor strike will make sure politicians are well aware of how much money they're losing if they oppose reform.

Lawrence Lessig, through his group, Change Congress, has already done some of the important legwork to get us involved in removing the influence of special interests in Congress.

We're giving Congress a choice: you can either have our money or money from special interests, but not both. We'll reward the reformers. But those who oppose reform won't get any money from us.

I and others will soon announce a large grassroots campaign aimed at channeling the amazing desire for change that Americans are feeling right now into tangible and fundamental reform of our political system.