From time to time, it is helpful to reflect on the vision of John Gardner in shaping the formation of Common Cause. I share the following quote from John Gardner's book, "Morale," published in 1978, found on page 23, titled "Rebuilding":
Let me be as explicit as possible concerning my view of the human capacity for regeneration of values. Imagine that a thriving, lawful community were stricken, in the course of a single night, with an amnesia that erased every memory of law, ethics, tradition, and customs governing standards of conduct. There would follow, of course, days and nights of bloodshed and looting, murder and rape. The physically strong would take what they wanted. People would fight like animals over dwindling food supplies. Brutal crimes would be committed out of lust, greed, cruelty, and rage.
But the whole history of the race tells us that in a matter of days some members of the stricken community would begin fumbling for means of ending the terror. They would grope toward some consensus as to which acts were the most intolerable. They would seek to define certain limits that should circumscribe the behavior of all. And thus, slowly, painfully, they would set out on the long road back to the rule of law and a framework of values."
Interesting words for the Common Cause community to reflect upon as we seek to
Get It Straight In 2008. Thanks for all that each of you are doing to help Common Cause.
"If you're a Democrat and you have to choose between the alternative minimum tax and the hedge fund industry, that's one tough ideological choice," said Viva Hammer.... "It's a choice between your votes and your wallet."
How sorry a system do we have that we hear this all the time: "they have to choose between the voters and the money"? Worse yet, we don't always hear it, we just see it when lawmakers cast votes on legislation.
This time, as the WaPo reports, it's about Democrats deciding whether to make superwealthy hedge fund managers pay the same tax rates as everyone else. Seem obvious? Yes. But when they factor in the money they rake in from the hedge funds? Not so much.
The measure has deeply divided Democrats, pitting a rank and file that has railed for years against inequities in the tax code against the party's money men, who are reluctant to bite the hand that has generously fed them.
...
The legislation would plug two obscure but highly controversial tax loopholes, deftly exploited by an industry that leans heavily Democratic. Private-equity fund managers earn much of their compensation by taking a cut of clients' earnings. It is pay for work, but critics of the arrangement note that it is taxed as capital gains, at 15 percent instead of the 35 percent income tax rate that they would otherwise pay.
It's this sort of appalling favoritism of wealthy campaign contributors in our democracy that cries out for
full public financing reform across the board, including the Fair Elections Now Act in Congress. That's why we're working to
Get It Straight in 2008.
Cross posted on Talking Justice.
One year from now, we'll be at the climax of the longest and most expensive federal campaign cycles in history, looking in our national rearview mirror at a $1 billion presidential race and another $1 billion spent on races for the House and Senate.
One billion dollars. The vast majority of it will come from wealthy donors writing large checks, no doubt demanding access to and influence on the winners once they sit behind their desks in Congress, or in the Oval Office. And who will say no to them? Those newly re-elected or newly elected lawmakers will already be worried about finding money to run their next campaign. That is how the fundraising arms race works.
Put all that fundraising activity against the backdrop of our national needs.
We need a solution to the health care crisis, a plan to address global warming, an honest debate on our foreign policy, and much more. The last thing we should have is members of Congress spending more than 30 percent of their time and energy fundraising. I'm not interested in watching another year of endless political money raising, as average voters feel further alienated from their own democratic government.
We need to Get it Straight in 2008. We won't be able to address health care or global warming without removing the influence of big money in politics. So that's what we must do. Public financing of campaigns, or "Fair Elections," allows candidates who show a broad base of public support to receive public funding to run a competitive campaign. Once in office, those same candidates feel accountable to the voters of their district, not their major donors. Imagine electing our legislators based on ideas and appeal to voters, rather than on who can raise the most money. That's not a bad picture.
Maine, Arizona, and Connecticut already use voluntary, full public financing systems for all of their statewide races. But to Get it Straight in 2008 we can't stop there. We need to change the way we finance campaigns across this country, from cities to states to Congress, where the bipartisan Fair Elections Now Act was introduced this year by Sen. Richard Durbin (D-IL) and Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA).
Just over a week from now, Nov. 12-16, is Fair Elections Action Week, when people and organizations from around the country that support public financing will take actions to show their support for this ultimate campaign finance reform.
If you agree we need action on health care, global warning, education and other critical issues, please join us in showing you want a change. Join the campaign to make Fair Elections Action Week a step toward a fairer democracy in which all voters--regardless of the size of their wallets--have an equal voice. You can simply sign your name in support, or choose an activity that will be going on somewhere near you to show your support.
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