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Let's make it a felony to have any private contact between companies and legislators then. All communication must be publicly available.

• JumpCrisscross 5y ago
  > Let's make it a felony to have any private contact between companies and legislators then Don't know if it's a felony to violate. But this sounds consistent with the Ethics in Government Act of 1978's reporting requirements [1]. > All communication must be publicly available This is a bad idea. It privileges those with physical access to lawmakers. It will also crowd out a good amount of honest communication in favor of theatre for public consumption. That said, there might be a way to thread the needle such that substantial communications around actual legislation get captured. Mark-ups on drafts, suggested language, official policy memos, et cetera. [1] https://www.opensecrets.org/personal-finances/disclosure https://www.opensecrets.org/personal-finances/disclosure
• pacifist 5y ago
  The same people who benefit from this relationship need to pass the laws that kill the goose. Maybe you think there are enough honest politicians to pull it off. I've been been around long enough to have been disabused of that notion.
  • JumpCrisscross 5y ago
    > I've been been around long enough to have been disabused of that notion Unless you're younger than 20, you've seen a Congress pass such reforms [1]. If you were around in the late 70s, you may also recall the Ethics in Government Act of '78. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bipartisan_Campaign_Reform_Act https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bipartisan_Campaign_Reform_Act