With just a little tweaking the recent Supreme Court decision to let corporations spend unlimited cash on political ads could just get us what we claim to want: honesty and transparency in our government.
I propose that all elected officials, from the President of the United State right down to school board members and alderpersons be required to wear uniforms to work.
These uniforms would have the name of the individual¹s corporate sponsor/owner written across the back (with perhaps an embroidered emblem on a front pocket). This way we citizens who are now only able to observe our government at work (because an individual can no longer actually participate in any meaningful way) will know exactly who is working for whom.
We would know which congressperson is owned by the National Rifle Association and which senators are owned by the oil companies or the health care industry. We would know when local decisions about liquor licenses are made who is doing the will of the Tavern League and which school board members have been purchased by the Chamber of Commerce.
If any legislation is inadvertently passed, there could also be a provision for the sponsoring corporation or industry to have the right to a slick, shiny cover on the bill. It might read "This war bill is brought to you by the Military Industrial Complex committed to bringing you more bang for your buck." Or "This health care bill is being brought to you by the health insurance industry. Remember, if you die sooner it will cost less."
Imagine the savings on staff time when there is no longer the need for anyone to spin any decision as "good for the future of our children." or "protecting our American Values." No more ackward posturing about fiscal responsibility or doing the will of the people. Americans would be able to see who is making our laws and why. We would know that the bottom line is, well, the bottom line.
If this works, we could soon move to a more efficient way of selecting our law makers. We could do away with costly elections altogether and simply have auctions. The highest bidder for any candidate would then own his or her very own "public official." This might be a little uncomfortable for any who remember enough of our history to recall the slave auctions, but I imagine that within a few years most of our historians will also have been purchased by universities, think tanks or publishers and that unfortunate comparison will fade.
Let¹s do away with the pretense that our lawmakers work for anyone other than those who have paid for them. Beginning with uniforms bearing company names and logos will make it clear and transparent just who owns which government officials and we can at last have some real honesty in government.
