To: All Americans Aware That Private Campaign Finance is Corruption, Bribery, The Obstacle to Good Governance

Ban Private Campaign Finance in America: Restore Democracy to The Republic

The United States of America has an election system that undermines equal representation, fosters and maintains an auction environment and puts the power of politics squarely and unequivocally in the hands of the wealthy and corrupt (and corrupts the non-corrupt)--at the expense of the vast majority of the electorate. We desire a constitutional convention and amendment to the constitution to halt this. If elections were publicly funded, they would be cheap, and no one could command more influence than another--except in reason, honor, and integrity--the way it should be.

We desire:
1. publicly-funded, equal-time candidate presentations and debates.
2. privately-financed campaigns and campaign contributions banned. Wealth buying influence is not free-speech, it's buying influence.
3. a nationwide standardized election system.
4. on-line polling options. The internet is good enough for opinion polls, university education, driver-license acquisition, healthcare enlistment, and credit-card purchases, so it's perfect for elections.

Why is this important?

B A C K G R O U N D
When it comes to corporate issues and the economy, right wing and left wing candidates don't differ much on the issues. They appear to be different because of their stances on taxes, social philosophy and foreign policy--and both Democrats and Republicans usually take huge contributions from both ends of the political spectrum in the corporate sector; the top 60 or so companies give money to both parties, and the two primary candidates running for office—which is why all the other issues connected to the economy (infrastructure, environmental protection, labor, education, health, energy and foreign policy) generally get compromised once a candidate is elected and takes office. So Money is the over-riding issue.

Campaigns--American-style--cost a lot of money. Politicians have to start raising money for their next election as soon as they take office (This is why every time a politician writes you about an issue, they also ask for a donation; and he or she often must compromise his or her principles to take that money. Money thus hamstrings our best intentions—and theirs.

Politicians are often forced to talk more about flash-point topics on the campaign trail--which distract us from issues they will likely vote the same way or similarly on (despite their campaign promises often to the contrary). This is where populism is born and it is caused by a need for money. If we eliminate this problem, candidates can talk about what is important to them and to us--showing whom they really are, letting us be whom we want to be and keeping votes flowing to the right people for the best results.

As mentioned above, the top sixty corporations generally donate to both dominant parties. That makes you and I an almost complete back-seat-concern (even when that is not what a politician may desire)--unless we are wealthy corporate officers who can have share-holders and lobbyists rewrite the laws for us; and this is how many laws are written now—they’re prepared by Political Action Committees and corporate lawyers or legal experts. Then Congresspersons and Senators simply sign them. Why not disallow this?

What are we? Are we slaves and second-class citizens? That is exactly what we are--under the present money-dominated system that WE allow.

American environmental, economic and national security policies have real domestic and foreign consequences. The climate, health, welfare, education, infrastructure, immigration, domestic and international security are at critical emergency levels all the time--yet we pay for and waste our time on listening to pandering around these issues and politicians focus on attacking one another. The money game guarantees this.

Can we afford to let the system be hamstrung as it is, like this? How long can we continue to make fools of ourselves in this way?

The Government Is Intended And Designed to Be For Us.

We, American Citizens, must wrest control of our national direction--not by violence, but by a revolution of volition in decision--and we must take public policy influence & power away from the clutches of only corporate and wealth-driven greed.

We need:
• Publicly-funded Campaign & Election Systems
• Several Equal-time Candidate Presentations
• Real Debates Between Candidates

A Word About Debates
We need real debates, because that is how we would drastically cut down on the bombardment we suffer from relentless stumping, pontificating and lying--which is not political discussion.

Debate is an intellectual process--wherein one and his or her opponent propose points of view about conditions and offer substantive solutions to the problems and then argue intelligently about it—all without outside moderation and polite agreements about what can and can't be mentioned--beforehand.

Now, candidates agree before-hand on what can be talked about and they do not deviate from that. They also do not have substantive discussions or arguments. They just talk past one another. Are they in kindergarten? Worse, are we? We allow and support this. We must stop it.

In ancient Greece—where democracy began, a person was not considered an adult unless s/he could advance a substantive argument. Are we adults or children? Do we want state leaders behaving like adults or children?

A Nationwide Standardized National Election System Minus The Electoral College

It's not the seventeen-hundreds anymore:
We are one nation. What people do in one part of the country affects all of the country—and the world.

How it will be delivered

Move On Emails them.