The United States has a representative democracy or a republic. Americans vote for state legislators and members of Congress, and they represent the voters in their states or districts.

Rep. Jim Marshall and senators Saxby Chambliss and Johnny Isakson are the members of Congress from Georgia, and they represent the voters in our state — concerns of Georgians. Moreover, it is logical to assume that only Georgians should be allowed to make campaign contributions for Marshall, Chambliss and Isakson. After all, Marshall, Chambliss and Isakson are working in the Congress for the concerns of Georgians. Not true! The good old guys and gals in Congress know to look out for themselves in re-election campaigns. The members of Congress receive contributions from Americans nationwide, and of course, this is an issue that liberal Democrats and conservative Republicans agree on without any partisan debate.

In reality, the members of Congress surely represent the lobbyists of big business and labor unions, not the concerns of the voters in their states or districts. For example, Georgia does not have a single oil-producing well, but still big oil companies have contributed huge funds for the re-election campaigns of Marshall, Chambliss, Isakson and all members of Congress, This one simple fact is the reason that Congress has failed to approve huge funds for research into solar, wind and geothermal sources of energy (President Jimmy Carter made the recommendation in 1977, but still Congress has failed to approve it).

In conclusion, campaign finance reform must be approved by Congress and restored our representative democracy to all Americans. However, Congress will never approve the reform. Besides, conservative Republicans argue that it is a violation of free speech to have a campaign finance law. The Supreme Court is presently hearing arguments and should decide in 2010 if a campaign finance law is a violation of free speech.

Needless to say, if conservative Republicans win the lawsuit then large corporations and labor unions will have every member of Congress in their back pockets. It won't take a rocket scientist or a brain surgeon to understand that if that day ever comes then the American representative democracy will no longer be a government of all Americans, but a government of special groups, by special interest groups and for special groups.

Voters! Wake up! How many times do you have to be hit by a baseball bat to realize Congress is slowly becoming a rubber-stamp for large corporations and labor unions.

 

Roy Wetherington

Tifton