Today, Issue One’s podcast “Swamp Stories” is proud to announce that it has joined a new network of podcasts called “The Democracy Group.” “Swamp Stories” is one of eight initial podcasts joining the network that each cover civil discourse, civic engagement, and issues of democracy. The others shows include: The Science of Politics by Michigan State University & the Niskanen
Read MoreTestimony from: Meredith McGehee, Executive Director, Issue One Before the Subcommittee on the Legislative Branch of the House Committee on Appropriations March 4, 2020 (Download.) Chairman Ryan, Ranking Member Herrera Beutler, and Subcommittee members—thank you for inviting me to testify today. I appreciate the opportunity to address the capacity of the legislative branch. My name is Meredith McGehee, and I have
Read More“Politicians shouldn’t pick their voters. Voters should pick their politicians.” No reform issue has gained more momentum across the country in recent years than banning partisan gerrymandering. It’s united Republicans, Democrats, and independents at the state and local level who want better representation and more say in how district lines are drawn. But it’s also brought the fight over political
Read More“We have a system in which the candidates can’t even control their own campaign. And when others can control the campaigns, and it’s being driven not by principle, but profit, you know, you’re going to end up with a system that is badly @#$%&* up.” That’s what Mark McKinnon, former political advisor to George W. Bush and John McCain, said
Read MoreToday, Issue One joins a group of political reform organizations in filing an amicus brief at the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in Michigan in support of the voter-approved independent redistricting commission that passed overwhelmingly in 2018. “We know that you cannot take the politics out of redistricting, but you can and should take the politicians
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“That sounds like a loophole.” Five words from former California Congressman Henry Waxman (D) summarizes episode three of Issue One’s podcast “Swamp Stories” about secret slush funds in Congress (also known as leadership PACs). And Waxman should know: He originally helped create leadership PACs back in 1978, not to allow for lavish living as they are used today, but to
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When new members are elected to Congress, there’s a two-month gap between election day and their swearing-in. Not long after in 2019, Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) exposed one of Washington’s most bizarre and corrupt secrets in an interview. What she didn’t know at the time was only a handful of other members of Congress had spoken so brazenly about how
Read MoreToday, 5 Republicans and 4 Democrats who served in Congress urged Senate leadership to fix the Federal Election Commission by only confirming nominees who would faithfully execute the nation’s campaign laws. The nine former members are all part of Issue One’s ReFormers Caucus, the largest bipartisan coalition of its kind ever assembled to advocate for solutions to fix the broken
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Today, Issue One is launching a new podcast, Swamp Stories: Cash and Corruption in Washington, a deep-dive into political reform — with a conservative lens. The podcast follows the host — millennial Republican and former candidate for office, Weston Wamp — as he shines a light on the swampiest practices in Washington that repulse Republicans and Democrats alike: Slush funds
Read MoreToday, Issue One and 14 other groups from across the political spectrum called on members of Congress to support the Moving Our Democracy and Congressional Operations Toward Modernization (MODCOM) Resolution (H.R. 756). The legislation is comprised of nearly 30 bipartisan recommendations from the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress that would make the House more efficient and effective. “These positives
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