We'll never have a Congress that works for us until we finance their campaigns

flpoljunkie

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Wed Feb-09-11 06:26 PM
Original message

We'll never have a Congress that works for us until we finance their campaigns

Democrats in the House failed to bring up a vote on the Fair Elections Now Act and it died at the end of the 111th Congress. It never even got a vote in committee in the Senate.

Members of Congress are too dependent on lobbyists to bundle contributions to fill their campaign coffers--all to pay for those rotten TV ads we all detest.

President Obama supported public financing of Congressional campaigns when he was a Senator, yet he's said not a word about public financing since he's been president and offered no support for the Fair Elections Now Act--altho perhaps not surprising, since he decided against taking public matching funds for his general election campaign.

Will it take another Watergate to clean up our corrupted and dysfunctional Congress? It would seem so.

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elleng

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Wed Feb-09-11 06:38 PM
Response to Original message

1. Won't happen.

;(

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flpoljunkie

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Thu Feb-10-11 01:00 PM
Response to Reply #1

7. Very unlikely. People know government doesn't work for them, but they don't understand why.

Many have been convinced by the Republican line their tax dollars should not be used for public financing of campaigns. The current finance system works for them, that's for sure.

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baldguy

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Wed Feb-09-11 06:39 PM
Response to Original message

2. We give the $174,000 each year. Corporations give them millions.

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WingDinger

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Wed Feb-09-11 06:56 PM
Response to Original message

3. Funny, considering that rethugs went after matching campaign funds first.

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ShadowLiberal

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Wed Feb-09-11 06:58 PM
Response to Original message

4. It can't happen until we replace the neocons on the Supreme Court who are against that

Real campaign finance reform that gets rid of the power of lobbyists will never happen until the idiots on the supreme court who view cash as free speech get replaced.

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flpoljunkie

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Thu Feb-10-11 09:47 AM
Response to Reply #4

6. Congress can pass a law to finance their own campaigns, but they'd rather lobbyists bundle cash.

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golfguru

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Wed Feb-09-11 07:16 PM
Response to Original message

5. +1000000000, 00000000000000, 000000000000000

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polichick

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Thu Feb-10-11 01:18 PM
Response to Original message

8. It won't happen until voters in huge numbers DEMAND it - until we take to the streets...

...like voters in Europe and the Middle East. Guess we'll see how much Americans will take.

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quaker bill

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Fri Feb-11-11 06:32 AM
Response to Original message

9. This or, when we consistently fire them

when they don't work for the people. If they start working for us, corporations will lose interest in funding them. There is no business sense in funding losing candidates. If we consistently fire them for not working for us, there will be little point in corporate funding.

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rucky

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Fri Feb-11-11 06:46 AM
Response to Original message

10. The only alternative is if we the voters educate ourselves and follow the money.

I'm not sure which one of those is more likely to happen.

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flpoljunkie

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Sat Feb-12-11 09:08 AM
Response to Reply #10

11. Yes. An informed electorate, not one led by the nose by Limbaugh, Hannity and Beck

That would be sweet, indeed. Speaking of Limbaugh Hannity and Beck, there is a Republican bill in the House to permanently end the Fairness Doctrine. The Republicans like their advantage on the air waves and don't want it changed.

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