For some of us, this question is easy to answer in the affirmative. But for others, perhaps more than care to admit, the answer is "well, they can't be worse". I'm one of those others.
I have faith in the netroots with regard to this question, but NOT the Democratic party as a whole. Frankly, I fear that beltway Dems are just as likely to sell out to corporate interests as the Republicans are. And I do NOT want the energy, money and time I put in trying to elect them going to waste. And so I ask, will Democrats really improve the legislative process?
When I think about John Kerry spending my hard earned contributions on sending Bob Shrum to Tuscany after
pocketing millions, I get pissed off. When I think about lobbying firms
beefing up with Democrats, I get nervous. But when I think about my own Dem rep
Crowley's activities in regards to the bankruptcy bill, I get really
really nauseous.
I know on a core level, that the "special interests" of Democrats are fundamentally different than those of Republicans. According to this TPM Cafe thread, we are about minorities, women, labor, environmentalists, etc. Repubs are supposedly about the Energy Lobby, Drug Lobby, and Military Industrial complex.
But I fear that as Democrats come into power, they are ripe for the plucking, as traditional Republican interest groups retool their staffs to pounce on freshman legislators, eager to fill their warchests with booty. Booty!
As I understand it, and I'm probably wrong, the only finger in the dyke at this point seems to be the netroots. If these new legislators see their constituents as the primary source of financing, instead of contributions from lobbyists, they'll be less beholden.
So how do we make sure meaningful lobbying reform gets on the agenda and stays there? Is it already in the works? Do we just have to accept that its part and parcel of government, and live with it?