How To Get Rid of Lobbyists
Jack Abramoff recently gave an interview on how he had bribed at least 100 congressional offices. He said that those numbers were pretty low when it comes to lobbying.
Michael Moore entertainingly depicted the revolving doors between Goldman Sachs and Congress. But like many on the left, he doesn't grasp that the problem isn't that the power of government can be bought and sold. The problem is that government has power at all.
Governmental power is greater than that of any corporation or individual. Government can take money it has not earned. No other entity can legitimately do that.
The big banks that received the bailouts, received them from the government. On their own, banks have to get their money from people who voluntarily give it to them. But not if they lobby Congress.
The problem, is if we outlawed lobbying, we would simply create a black market for political favors. Just as outlawing drugs has created a dangerous black market for drugs.
Of course, it would be fun for a while to watch cops taser lobbyists instead of minorities for a change. But the point is that we cannot get rid of human desires by outlawing them. We can criminalize actions, but the idea that we can get rid of the desire for money (greed) is as ridiculous as thinking we can get rid of the desire for drugs.
The good news is that this Gordian knot can be solved. We could get rid of lobbyists, by getting rid of the carcass on which they feed.
The market value of something is determined by supply and demand. If you increase the supply of something, the price plummets (which is how the industrial revolution made it possible for "poor" people to afford TVs, cars, phones, etc.).
For example, a U.S. citizen who was put on the terrorist watch list, decided to make all of his actions public, so that his personal information would have zero market value.
Demand for power is high, and supply is limited to government officials (435 Congressmen, 100 Senators, 1 President, 12 Judges).
We could destroy the market value of political power, by spreading that political power thin. In other words, by giving it back to the people. Lobbying becomes much less effective when you have to bribe 300,000,000 people rather than 300 people.
Power to the people.
Michael Moore entertainingly depicted the revolving doors between Goldman Sachs and Congress. But like many on the left, he doesn't grasp that the problem isn't that the power of government can be bought and sold. The problem is that government has power at all.
Governmental power is greater than that of any corporation or individual. Government can take money it has not earned. No other entity can legitimately do that.
The big banks that received the bailouts, received them from the government. On their own, banks have to get their money from people who voluntarily give it to them. But not if they lobby Congress.
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| Notice that once lobbyists get some tax money, they can use our taxes to bribe Congress. Congressmen and crony corporations use the revolving door of lobbying to basically pocket your tax dollars. |
Of course, it would be fun for a while to watch cops taser lobbyists instead of minorities for a change. But the point is that we cannot get rid of human desires by outlawing them. We can criminalize actions, but the idea that we can get rid of the desire for money (greed) is as ridiculous as thinking we can get rid of the desire for drugs.
The good news is that this Gordian knot can be solved. We could get rid of lobbyists, by getting rid of the carcass on which they feed.
The market value of something is determined by supply and demand. If you increase the supply of something, the price plummets (which is how the industrial revolution made it possible for "poor" people to afford TVs, cars, phones, etc.).
For example, a U.S. citizen who was put on the terrorist watch list, decided to make all of his actions public, so that his personal information would have zero market value.
Demand for power is high, and supply is limited to government officials (435 Congressmen, 100 Senators, 1 President, 12 Judges).
We could destroy the market value of political power, by spreading that political power thin. In other words, by giving it back to the people. Lobbying becomes much less effective when you have to bribe 300,000,000 people rather than 300 people.
Power to the people.
What is lobbyists had to be elected by the people? That'd be interesting.
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