I saw Capitalism: A Love Story yesterday. The film left me feeling angry and frustrated. I'm angry that our elected leaders have led us so deeply into the mess we're in right now. My frustration comes from having an idea about one thing that needs to be done to help correct the situation, but not having the power to get it done.
I know what the problem is. Our politicians in Washington have been bought out by special interest groups that spend millions in campaign contributions. And I know how to fix the problem. Pass a law that says that if you accept a campaign contribution, you also immediately create a conflict of interest with respect to that group and the interests they represent. So if you accept a contribution from big pharma, you must recuse yourself from voting on any issue that impacts big pharma in any way. The same rule would apply to banks, insurance companies, oil companies and, yes, labor unions or any other interest group that can currently buy access and influence in Congress.
There is no need to write all kinds of laws that limit campaign contributions. You really don't need to regulate the givers. They will only challenge those laws in court anyway as a violation of their first amendment rights to free speech. The law needs to go after the takers. There are fewer of them – 535 to be exact, 435 in the House and 100 in the Senate. But how could such a law ever get passed? After all, it would require Congress to pass it. It would seem there is no way. But I think there is a way.
It will take a grassroots effort. All the major groups and players would need to make a push for such a law. Progressive media folks like Michael Moore, Rachel Maddow, Ed Schultz, Thom Hartman, Keith Olbermann and many more would need to speak up for such a law. Organizations like MoveOn and People for the American Way would have to organize their members to get behind it. People like Arianna Huffington, Marcos Molitsas, Jane Hamsher would need to use the power of their websites to push for such a law.
The strategy would be to get a small number of members of Congress to sponsor such a bill. I believe there are a few who would be willing to get the ball rolling. Then it would be up to all the folks I just mentioned to pressure other members of Congress to sign on as co-sponsors to the bill. Those who refuse to sign on would be targeted with ads, letters to their local papers and other negative publicity. Ultimately, they would be told that if they don't support such a law, they will be targeted to be voted out of office – Democrats and Republicans alike. The message is, "If you don't play, you pay."
Such an effort could work. Right now there are a lot of people like me who are sick and tired of what our elected officials in Washington are doing and we want to do something about it. The power of the internet and the grassroots can make it happen. Just look what we've already witnessed with the election of Barack Obama. The mechanisms are there to make it work. We just need to think big and get some big-name people to get the ball rolling and keep it rolling.
If you think this idea has merit and would like to help move it along or if you think I'm just whistling in the wind, I would appreciate hearing your thoughts about it. Also, if you think it's worth sharing with others, please pass it on.