Who Owns the U.S. Congress?

The sad truth about how our modern congress works reveals the power of political contributions and the corporate lobby!
by Charlie Leck

Question: Why did Joe Lieberman so valiantly oppose real health care reform?

Answer: Not because he didn’t believe such reform was absolutely necessary, but because he had already sold his soul, for very, very big bucks, to the Health and Pharmaceutical Industry!

You may take that one singular example and multiply it a hundred times, regarding many different, varied and complex issues, and you begin to understand who runs the federal legislative process in the United States.

Barack Obama knew this when he ran for President. For heaven’s sake, he spent plenty of time as an august member of America’s most exclusive club – the U.S. Senate. In his campaign for President, this exciting and eloquent man promised us change. He promised that things would be different and that we, you and I, would become the new agents of power and change in Washington.

Oh, my! I fell for that crap (I’ve desperately tried to find a better word without success)! Obama should be proposing new Congressional rules for lobbying and campaign contributions. It is the only way to give Congress back to the people.

There is no change. We are NOT the change we were looking for! Barack Obama will not be an agent of change.

There is only one way to change the process by which laws are written, proposed and passed in the United States. The political donation of funds to Congresspersons and Senators must be stopped – or, at the very least, curtailed drastically. Power has to be taken away from giant corporations to so affect laws that are passed by our Congress. The same is true for the huge and powerful labor unions. And, it is just as true for mega-rich individuals.

If we are truly a democracy, votes should not be sold to the highest bidder.

Joe Lieberman has five years remaining to do vile and disgusting things in the U.S. Senate. That blame lies with the voters of Connecticut. They did a bad thing in the election of 2008 and now they must live with the shame of sending such a disgusting scoundrel to Washington.

The shame is that there are dozens of Joe Lieberman in the Congress – of both parties and of all kinds of ideologies. They don’t go to the floor of Congress to vote as independent minded, free thinking people. Their votes have been sold and are no longer their own.

A new American revolution will be necessary to take back the legislative process, in order to put it in the hands of the people again.

Is there anyone out there with the guts for the fight?