Forum Post: The Only Thing Neocons, Theocons, Conservatives, Libertarians, Teabaggers, Democrats, Moderates, Liberals, Socialists, Communists, and Independents Are Going To Agree Upon.
Posted 13 years ago on Nov. 12, 2011, 1:30 a.m. EST by puff6962
(4052)
This content is user submitted and not an official statement
No corporation should be allowed the ability of concentrated influence over our political process. ALL corporate donations to campaigns should cease and contact with representatives or their staff should be commensurate with that of individual constituents. All corporate contact with government should be in written form thereby turning the lobbyist into, essentially, an opinion writer. ALL contact with corporations or lobbyists is to be written or recorded with the information then be entered into the Congressional Record for all to see.
If the supreme court stands in the way, then enumerate the language in a Constitutional Amendment and lets have a vote!
Lobbyists should not be allowed to donate to campaigns and lobbyists should have no direct role in the writing of legislation.
Anyone who serves in our federal government should FOREVER be barred from becoming a registered lobbyist or from working in a lobbyist firm.
If you want to understand how vital this little snippet is to OWS, just read "Capitol Punishment: The Hard Truth About Washington Corruption From America's Most Notorious Lobbyist," by Jack Abramoff.
The new golden rule: Those with the gold, make the rules The old golden rule: Do unto others, as you would have done upon yourself.
i like it
It comes down to three things....
Get big money out of politics.
Deny lobbyist access above that commensurate with an average citizen.
Require written public records of all interactions between corporations and our government.
Not bad. Not bad at all.
I, speaking for all liberals, support this. :o)
Interesting... I almost agree with everything you said.
Enforcing this would be a problem. The federal government is huge. Some conservatives still might spin it as a regulation on business rather than a regulation on the federal government but Tea parties might see this for what it is. It does stand to reason though "how do politicians get their message out" if they cannot get their money from special interest groups? Individuals wont financially back their favorite candidate. Which could turn into "he who starts with the most wins" in terms of campaigning.
Plus if I'm planning on running for office in a year or two start my back room deals early so I'm financially set...
Enforcing anything is huge. Personal conversations with lobbyists should be treated like INSIDER TRADING. If you think that the government is huge, imagine all of the corporations and all of the information that can be funneled. Yet, the stark penalties associated with insider trading help to tamp down something that is inherent. The same would occur with the lobbyist industry.
jazz fingers from a progressive.
And that's only the beginning .
Again, if you get this passed, then you are half way there in working through the issues we must face.
Nothing will change until we change the way we choose our leaders.