Can US citizens regain control of our government?

[Astronuc]

If we have freedom of speech, why do people need to pay lobbyists to get access to Congress.

Oh, yeah, we have to pay for them to listen.

 

[SOS2008]

You don't want the uninformed to vote, but you want your Senator to legislate based on their opinions? Or do you think the uninformed are only a small minority?

The example used was in regard to illegal aliens. It is a hot issue that people are following. I believe most representatives including McCain are not voting their conscience, but rather are listening to special interest groups. McCain also has supported the invasion of Iraq, and still does even though this too is a hot issue and the facts that have since emerged indicate that McCain is the one who is uninformed.

Why have representatives at all if they can't vote according to their own views? If they're simply supposed to do exactly what the majority of their constituents want them to do, why not just legislate by popular opinion poll? You wouldn't even need a congress.

Polls are of course samples with statistical error, but most of the time I would prefer we went by polls. I've only seen one so far that I didn't agree with, which was about the recent separation of powers issue and the FBI confiscating documents. But most of the time polls reflect my views, such as not making abortion completely illegal, the invasion of Iraq, illegal aliens, etc. So sure, I'd be in favor of getting rid of congress.

 

[turbo]

If we have freedom of speech, why do people need to pay lobbyists to get access to Congress.

Oh, yeah, we have to pay for them to listen.

Incumbents have such a huge advantage over their challengers that our congressional representatives truly do not have to bother to court our votes, or do as we wish. If you want them to listen, you'd better have money to give them. Whether or not there is an identifiable quid pro quo involved in these transactions, it is bribery, just the same.

One solution: Perhaps we could limit campaign donations to $5 per person with very stiff fines for both the donor and the recipient if the limit is exceeded. This would dilute the influence of the wealthy and powerful, and it would make the candidates much more reliant of grassroots efforts. It's obscene, when a candidate for office raises and spends millions for a campaign, and instead of engaging in public discourse and debates, they talk in sound-bites, and engage in personal attacks against their opponent (through surrogates, of course, don't want to get the hands dirty).

Another thing that might help even the playing field would be to suspend the franking privileges of all members of Congress for mass-mailings during the 6 months leading up to an election. Representatives routinely send out "informative" mailings during the run-up to an election that are nothing more than self-serving campaign tools. "Look what I am doing for the voters!" If our tax dollars are going to finance this, either the practice should stop, or we should extend such privileges to the challengers, too.

 

[edward]

This bit of information is typical of the way government is headed.

The number of registered lobbyists in Washington has more than doubled since 2000 to more than 34,750 while the amount that lobbyists charge their new clients has increased by as much as 100 percent. Only a few other businesses have enjoyed greater prosperity in an otherwise fitful economy.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/21/AR2005062101632.html

The entire article is a good read for those unaware of how lobbyists are now leading the government rather than interacting with the government as they had in the past.

 

[Echo 6 Sierra]

...groups like the Minutemen go to the border and build fences. For this Bush calls them vigilantes.

Now he sends the Guard there, armed, to build fences.

When he was campaining he spoke Spanish in his speeches a lot and now says that immigrants should learn to speak English. Good thing for him he can't run again.

Face it, we're all going to wind up in a KBR/Haliburton indoctrination camp.

 

[turbo]

Face it, we're all going to wind up in a KBR/Haliburton indoctrination camp.

OK, now that you've given away the plan, the CIA is going to give you a free plane ride to Romania, or maybe Egypt if you act up too much.

 

[Astronuc]

Putting a stop to government overspending?
http://marketplace.publicradio.org/shows/2006/06/19/PM200606193.html

The Senate Budget Committee tomorrow looks at an overhaul package that would force big spenders in Congress to stay below a steadily declining limit. If they don't? Mandatory across-the-board spending cuts. Yeah, right!

KAI RYSSDAL: If you ran a household budget like Congress runs the government, you'd wind up in jail. Many lawmakers haven't met a pet project they didn't like. So this week some on Capitol Hill are making a plea: Stop me before I spend again.

Marketplace's John Dimsdale has the story from Washington.