Government Ethics

…and other oxymorons…

Ethics Rules usually include annual limits for campaign contributions and gifts to elected officials, but insider trading and other things are allowed. 

More often than not, government ethics rules and committees are used to attack political opponents and tie them up in ethics investigations they are forced to defend. In the end, most of these ethics charges are dropped, but the damage has been done and the ethics committee remains unaccountable for their malicious damage. Its political weaponry designed to keep “outsiders” from running for office and keep insiders “in line”.

I have long proposed that we change campaign finance rules to deny special interest the right to contribute to political candidates.  I would restrict this right to registered voters who would only be able to make contributions to candidates who would appear on their ballot.

Special interest groups would exercise their own political speech on their own websites and with their own ads and articles and movies and songs and all other means of conveying their message.

If elected officials were free from having to spend all their time fundraising, they might be able to have the time to write and read their own Bills, Laws and Regulations.  They would have the time to consider each Bill individually and not allow unrelated amendments or Omnibus spending bills or Continuing Resolutions that allow bad laws to be passed.

We have to admit that we need to replace 80% of the Legislators in order to drain the swamp.

Norb Leahy, Dunwoody GA Tea Party Leader