Government Shutdown: Eliminate Lobbyists and Create Term Limits. Toss Them All Out Every Six Years.

By Maurice Lacunza


Congress has been very very good to me!
The U.S. government is shut down. That means that I can NOT contact my senators. My emails are bounced back as "undeliverable" and my phone calls are met with a recording that says they are shut down. How does a government of representation become unrepresentative? Do I have to get on a tractor and drive to DC?

 You can have a war in Iraq but you can't call your Senator. It is time we find a legal strategy to gut the current system and set up a system in which Congress can actually REPRESENT citizens and not special interests.
It only serves Big Money, Big Oil & Big Pharma.

1) Congress depends on lobbying for special interests who write laws that serve their special interests only (ironically, Congress is a special interest too.) In return, the lobby group provides financial support for the congressman. Norway has a working model that serves very well. Over 50% of Congress Senators who leave office are hired as lobbyists and get twice the salary they earned as a public servant. Check out Norway.
By the busloads from 
Congress to K Street lobby firms


Solution: 
Restrict Lobbyists

2) Eliminate campaign donations. If Congress doesn't have to worry about where the money comes from, they can't be bought off as easily.



Solution: Taxpayer funded campaigns. 

3) Everybody wants power and control. Serving in the current Congressional environment feeds and builds that power and control.  Kick them all out every six years.  


Solution: Term Limits of six years.

After serving in Congress for six years,
Farmer Brown went back to his regular job.
The only way to stop the prostitution of Congress is to eliminate lobbyists, reduce term limits, and provide for equal financing of political campaigns. As long as Congress can be bought and sold, they will serve those special interests including themselves. During the shutdown, Congress EXEMPTED themselves from the "shutdown." Congress does not care about you. They care about their own selfish selves and their special interests that bank roll them.


Maybe the shutdown will produce an angry constituency that creates the same type of anger that we saw rise up with the Occupy Wallstreet/Anonymous movements. It is time though that we reign in our wild Congress and impose limits on the power and control that has been so rampantly abused.We can only hope that one day Congress will be a congress of the people, by the people and for the people.


Comments

  1. You can have a war in Iraq but you can't call your Senator. It is time we find a legal strategy to gut the current system and set up a system in which Congress can actually REPRESENT citizens and not special interests. The core of this corrupt system serves Big Money, Big Oil and Big Pharma.

    Over 50% of Congress Senators who leave office are hired as lobbyists and get twice the salary they earned as a public servant. Solution: Eliminate lobbying.

    2) Eliminate campaign donations. If Congress doesn't have to worry about where the money comes from, they can't be bought off as easily. Solution: Taxpayer funded campaigns.

    3) Everybody wants power and control. Serving in the current Congressional environment feeds and builds that power and control. Kick them all out every six years.
    Solution: Term Limits of six years.

    ReplyDelete
  2. It is time we find a legal strategy to gut the current system and set up a system in which Congress can actually REPRESENT citizens and not special interests.

    1) Congress depends on lobbying for special interests who write laws that serve their special interests only (ironically, Congress is a special interest too.) In return, the lobby group provides financial support for the congressman. Solution: Eliminate lobbying.

    2) Eliminate campaign donations. Only Taxpayer funded campaigns.

    3) Everybody wants power and control. Break that cycle. Kick them all out every six years. Solution: Term Limits of six years.

    ReplyDelete

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