This is the third installment of our blog series on Blueprints for Democracy, a new collection of solutions policymakers can implement to give everyone a greater say in their democracy. Read the full series here. When you think of corruption, you might envision the classic “backroom deal.” Voluminous cigar smoke rises in a low-lit room. A shady character hands a
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We are happy and proud to congratulate former Representative, Vice-Chairman of the 9/11 Commission and Issue One ReFormer Lee Hamilton, one of the 17 recipients of this year’s Presidential Medal Freedom. Rep. Hamilton has had a long and accomplished career in public service and we commend his commitment to the American people and to strengthening our democracy. One of Rep.
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The ReFormers Caucus, a bipartisan group of more than 100 former members of Congress and governors—including Ambassador Tim Roemer, Sec. Chuck Hagel, Sen. Tom Daschle and Gov. Christine Todd Whitman—released a statement today declaring that the power of money in our elections threatens the integrity of our democracy, and points out that nearly nine out of 10 Americans, from across
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In a major reform victory, concerted pressure has led Democrats in the Connecticut legislature to eliminate a proposed suspension of the state’s landmark public financing system. The proposal, which would have shaved $11.7 million off of the state’s budget by cutting the program’s funding for the 2016 election, came under fire from reform groups and legislators inside the state and
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This is the second installment of our blog series on Blueprints for Democracy, a new collection of solutions policymakers can implement to give everyone a greater say in their democracy. Read the full series here. In the last Blueprints for Democracy entry, we discussed the various types of citizen funding systems. Here’s how cities and states are utilizing those different
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Harvard Professor and Issue One Advisory Board Member Malcolm Salter has an excellent op-ed in Forbes detailing how the sugar industry uses campaign contributions and lobbying to artificially inflate the price of sugar and maintain billion dollar subsidies. The sugar industry, which Republican presidential candidates Ted Cruz and Jeb Bush have held up as a prime example of crony capitalism,
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The ReFormers Caucus launched this month and is already putting money-in-politics reform at the tops of hearts and minds across the country. Last Thursday, former representatives and Caucus members Connie Morella (R-MD) and Tom McMillen (D-MD) joined Congressman John Sarbanes (D-MD) and Republican Governor Larry Hogan’s policy director, Adam Dubitsky, for a vibrant round-table discussion on how to reorient government
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Over the coming weeks, we’ll be highlighting policies from the Blueprints for Democracy, a new collection of solutions policymakers can implement to give everyone a greater say in their democracy. Read the full series here. Citizen funding programs, known elsewhere as public financing, offer a proven and effective means of empowering the general public to participate in the democratic process.
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Americans on both sides of the aisle readily point to the excessive power of money in politics as an obstacle that keeps the government from addressing the country’s most pressing challenges. And according to one poll, while 91 percent of Americans agree that money in politics is a major problem, just nine percent feel it will ever be solved. But
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Homeland security, taxes, the size of government, campaign finance. Of these issues, the top four being mentioned on Facebook, only one was left undiscussed in last night’s Fox Business GOP presidential primary debate. Americans care deeply about the level of money in our elections, which makes its omission last night deeply troubling. The debate focused on the economy and business,
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