President Obama has held 117 fund raisers since becoming president. Add that to vacation days and golf outings and we don’t get much work from our president.
Why do big donors make big donations to politicians? They expect something in return. And, in most cases, they get what they pay for. Plus, the politicians with the most money generally get elected or reelected.
We don’t get the best people, we get the people who owe the most favors to special interest groups.
The first step in this reform is to tax campaign donations. Next, we need to limit the amount of donation any one campaigner can get. Put a ceiling on it. And, make that ceiling low. When a politician retires they have access to those campaign funds. This is the core problem with crooks like Rod Blagojevich. He knew his political career was over. He knew he was broke. But, he needed money. So, he tried to sell the senate seat and all the other shenanigans he pulled. He wanted to retire with a few million in the bank that he could tap.
We don’t get much work from our elected officials since they begin holding fundraisers immediately after reelection. They don’t represent the people, they represent the donors. The best candidates don’t win, the ones with the biggest campaign war chests do. It’s the root of many of our problems.
Just look at the public union issues we are facing. Pubic unions are generally the biggest donors to politicians. They get their supporters elected. Then, they get the raises and benefits that add up to bills the cities, states, counties and townships can’t afford.
Or, the environmental groups. They get the people elected that will block progress, set unreal regulations, and stifle domestic energy options. This adds up to less manufacturing, less drilling, pipelines that don’t get built, and fewer jobs and higher energy prices.
It’s time to get serious about real campaign reform in this country. Not McCain style reform, but real reform.
Let’s get the special interests out of government and let the people decide who gets political jobs.
