Elections and campaigns

If you are you concerned about how to get federal elected officials to actually represent the people who elected them, here are a couple of thoughts that (if implemented) could actually help – 1. The U.S. Constitution says that representatives and senators are to be paid from the federal treasury, but does not mention each official’s expense of office or perks. If those items were to be overseen and paid by the government of the state that sent them to Washington, the attention of the elected officials would be much better focused not just on the Federal Government, but also on real, actual representation of their state and the people in it. 2. If political campaign contributions were restricted to constituents who are eligible to vote, the allegiance of the officials would be owed to their their own voters. This change could actually be implemented for any elected office on any level and not just federal offices. Every candidate would effectively have the same constituency from which to draw campaign funding. The change would, for example, prevent a wealthy individual in one state from investing in political figures in another state. It would also eliminate PACs and corporate investments in political figures. Corporate bodies are tools of trade and commerce, not human beings. Government is for the people, not the ‘screwdrivers’ the people use. Such things do not vote – why are they allowed now to influence political figures. The old adage of “follow the money” is applicable. Your vote is, after all, reduced to an absurd formality when it is used to elect someone who is financially obligated to someone else.