Both the Executive and Congress are in constant betrayal of the public trust because they represent less than 30% of the public. 70% of America did not vote for Obama, but to be fair to him, he is the same as Bush--irrelevant as long as we have a system owned by Wall Street.
We must demand of Obama and Congress, the latter as the price for not being recalled or defeated in 2010, an Electoral Reform Act along the following
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Both the Executive and Congress are in constant betrayal of the public trust because they represent less than 30% of the public. 70% of America did not vote for Obama, but to be fair to him, he is the same as Bush--irrelevant as long as we have a system owned by Wall Street.
We must demand of Obama and Congress, the latter as the price for not being recalled or defeated in 2010, an Electoral Reform Act along the following lines, drawing on Ralph Nader's lifetime of experience, as refined by Jim Turner and myself.
Phase I to be mandated for 2010 Election
Holiday Voting. Proposed, that to avoid undue hardship to the hardest workers in America, the working poor, national and state elections shall only be held over a week-end or on a holiday. If held on a Saturday, Orthodox Jews should have the option of voting in person on Sunday or by ballot in person the week prior, to be opened and counted on Election Day.
Honest Open Debates. Proposed, that to end the current monopoly of the debates by the bifurcated two-party alliance against independent and third parties, that the League of Women Voters be restored to their role as the managers of honest open debates, to include third, fourth, and fifth parties.
Expanded Debates. Proposed, that to end the charade of one individual being up to the task of managing America, that the debates be expanded to include a minimum of three Cabinet officials to be announced in advance, and generally to include the Attorney General, the Secretary of Defense, and the Secretary of State. Should the League of Women Voters desire, the Transpartisan Policy Institute would undertake the scheduling of substantive policy debates engaging all announced candidates for specific Cabinet positions, and shall provide, on the basis of open source intelligence from the Earth Intelligence Network, and budgetary costs and implications from the Public Budget Office, a range of viable policy options for debate and deliberation.
Instant Run-Off. Proposed, that to ensure the election of a winner elected by a majority, that the instant run-off concept be adopted for all national and state elections.
Phase II to be mandated for 2012 Election, with Districts Redrawn by November 2009
Full and Balanced Representation. Proposed, that to ascertain a properly representative balance in the House of Representatives for each state, and Open Registration be provided and that all parties having at least 10% of the voters registering a preference for their political philosophy, shall be eligible for assigned districts proportional to their number, and also to a proportional share of leadership positions in legislative bodies at all levels including the Congress of the United States of America.
Tightly-Drawn Districts. Proposed, that we end the corrupt practice of gerrymandering, replacing it with compact computer drawn districts similar to the kind used in Iowa.
Full Public Funding of Diverse Candidates. Proposed, to eliminate all federal financing of campaign, and all political action committees and structured bundled contributions to any candidate, that we institute a Campaign Contribution Tax Credit up to $100 per candidate up to ten candidates per individual in each election cycle to encourage broad based individual political campaign contributions.
No Legislation Without Consultation. Proposed, to eliminate special interest dominance of the legislative process, and to end the practice of passing legislation such as the Patriot Act without its actually being read, and to end all secret earmarks, that We all major legislation be published on line in Wiki format, with an easy to understand one-page summary, one week prior to its coming to a vote. This also includes a demand that all earmarks be listed no less than one week in advance of their being considered for a vote, and that all earmarks be publicly announced and offered for amendment to the voters in the relevant district at least one week prior to the passage of national legislation affecting them.
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