"The Constitution only gives people the right to pursue happiness.
You have to catch it yourself." - Ben Franklin
The U.S. Constitution is an incredible document, providing broadbrush ideals and foundational law which is supposed to guarantee that We, the People, are empowered with the power to determine our future. It's important that in order for this to continue, we must continually improve the system, its policies, its law, its way of conducting business in a fair and just manner.
In my past writing, I have been critical of the partisan environment in Washington DC which seems to have become accustomed. We the People have allowed our leaders to place partisanship ahead of our very citizenship. While talk radio and blogs go "wild" with discussion, our voter turnout over the past twenty years continues to dwindle. We've become despondenty and apathetic.
We the People are hardly heard. We the People have been crowded out by greed, by narcissism of the highest magnitude; by our Partisan elected leaders who have chosen to turn a blind eye and accept lackluster performance and sometimes, outright corrupt behavior by others.
People feel less and less a part of the political process. They are simply a "buck and a ballot" to most politicians and their parties. With the cost of campaigns ever-rising, it's become so competitive for candidates to get their message out that one must admit, it's ever more difficult for political candidates - both rising stars and incumbents - to think about anything more than fund raising and advertising.
We've had some great discussions about the political process, and we've had discussions which have started to open peoples' eyes that it isn't "politics," per se, that turns Joe Six-pack off to American leadership; it's partisan politics which has made the thought of supporting certain governing leaders in their ambition to "serve the people."
So, I ask you, of all the thoughts that go through your head, what THREE SOLUTIONS do you suggest to make the political scene LESS PARTISAN, and remind governing leaders and their respective parties that the People, not the Parties, are in charge. How can we put the Peoples' Constitution back in its rightful place, and how might we even ADD to it to make this country an even better place?
In other words, what THREE SOLUTIONS do you have which will reduce partisan power, restore the Peoples' powers, and re-engage the American Electorate to participate in the political process?
Author John Coonen is a Partner in The Coffee Group, established in 1987 as a non-partisan campaign and cause marketing firm in Chicago, Illinois; Greensboro, North Carolina; and Boulder, Colorado.
Photo credit: CarlinPhoto, iStockPhoto
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Comments: 20
Get rid of the people who are there now,vote new in
Set term limits
Get rid of the lobiest
stop the million dollar campains
oh damn thats to many
2. Do not allow lobbies and special interest groups to donate to campaigns, only individuals and only a limited amount.
3. Cap the amount of money that can be spent on a campaign, make them rely on debates and supporters to get their message across.
2. Make election day a national holiday and make voting mandatory. OR put polls in the workplace and have people vote at work. Either way, enforce a voting law.
3. Get rid of the two-party system.
2 Government must be returned to a part time job
3 Campaigns must be funded through public funding
4 Government must be returned to centerest position, not extreme positions
5 Selection of candidates should be returned to a modified selection by
members of the party, and this dizzying carousel must end
6 Allow third and fourth parties, but they must put in place viable candidates
no someone merely to take votes from another
I can think of some other reforms but this will do for now
With a one thousand dollar limit.
Only two months allowed for campaigning before an election .
Federal term limits 12 years house and senate and no switching between the two for six years minimum.
1. We would need a strong third party.
2. Get rid of the electoral college.
3. Term limits on all Congressional seats.
4. All citizens be required to vote.
5. A very specific limit on individual donations and donations by citizens only. Not one penny from lobbyist or business.
6. Again, I have to agree with Don...a very short period of time of campaigning.
7. A verification that all candidates have no arrests or convictions for ANY crime....from DUI on up the list.
This list could go on and on.
Become active in the Party of your choice, and make your voice heard in the organization. (contrary to public opinion, political parties are made up of people, not machines.)
Participate in Unity08, the non partisan convention on line for the 2008 Presidential election.
"2. Make election day a national holiday"
Elizabeth - high five. I hadn't heard that one before. DUH!
- Go back to paper ballots. Electronic balloting seems too complex for the Conspiracy Theory folks to grasp, and I'd rather not hear from these loons any more.
- Time Limits on the Presidential campaign season. Just a suggestion : Start July 1st, end Election night. This might keep the costs down too.
Introduce recall elections at the Federal level.
Stop voter registration by party.
BTW, the Electoral College is another one of those compromises made to get states who wanted to stick with the Articles of Confederation to ratify the Constitution. These days it's an anachronism. States aren't little principalities.
You have to catch it yourself." - Ben Franklin
Thanks for the quote John I think that this needs to be reminded to people more often.
#2 Substantial reductions in pay, perks, and benefits, for elected officials. Make government service a part-time endeavor. This would force them back "home", and into real jobs, when they weren't conducting the business of gov't.
#3 Regular, scheduled, performance reviews of elected officials by their constituents. No more shadow dealings, no more secrecy. More direct involvement with the people they work for. These town hall-type meetings would be open to all citizens, and no pre-screening of questions or pre-selecting of participants would be allowed. Results of issues brought up in their last review would be re-visited.
#4 (Why did you ask for ONLY 3?? LOL!) ALL campaign contributions to be put in ONE fund, and regular citizens assigned as overseers - none more than 90 days - from which every candidate is paid an equal amount for their campaign. Further, none of the candidates could use their personal monies to run a campaign.
#5 For Presidential elections - No more primaries in select states. Each state would hold a type of straw vote to decide its choice in national elections, and send regular citizens (perhaps chosen by random -say like you get for jury duty) to the conventions. This would keep candidates from focusing on campaigning only in a select few areas.
Just the tip of the iceberg.