3. Respect the people:
I know every elected official thinks that they do this, but I can't tell you how many times I have seen legislators commit their vote to another legislator or lobbyist before they have heard public testimony or floor debate. In fact it is the norm. I did it one time in my first session. I told a lobbyist that I would support a bill before the committee hearing (committee hearings are where the public gets to testify). Then I listened to the testimony. I remember thinking, "Boy am I on the wrong side of this bill."
From then on I told people that asked me for a vote that whereas they may be making very good points I never committed before I heard the testimony and the debate. In the Capitol lobbyists are ubiquitous and they frequently have connections to large support groups and contributors, but you don't have to please them in this way. Hear them out and treat them with respect, but don't commit at an early stage on a bill.
One last thing, I know many people think that the system is dysfunctional, too dominated by wealthy special interests and campaign contributions. They blame the elected officials and the interest groups, and it is true that they deserve blame. But the people also need to look in a mirror. In a democracy the people are sovereign. We hire elected officials to work for us. But like any other employee they need supervision from employers who are paying attention. If the people don't know who their Congress people or State legislators are, if they don't know how they vote on important issues, if they never tell them how they feel, then naturally special interests will fill this vacuum created by the lack of participation by the citizens.
Money has too much power, but it can be counteracted by people power, if the people choose to become educated and participate. But it takes a little work and in our prosperity and freedom we have neglected the work. I know many people are happy about the election of Obama, but he will not be able to do what you want him to do, and what he wants to do, unless he is supported by a knowledgable and active people. It is not enough to vote and then go back to your own private concerns for four years. You wouldn't hire employees for your business and then fail to supervise them. We can't do it in our public responsibilities either.
Too often, Americans act like they are the children and that the elected officials are the adults. In fact the reverse is true.
I hope you are doing well and as always do not hesitate to write back with comments or questions. Feel free to forward this email, republish in some other forum, or to send me the addresses of people who you feel would like to receive these emails.
Sincerely,
Ken Gordon
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Senator Ken Gordon, District 35-Denver
Web: www.kengordon.com
Email: ken <at> kengordon.com
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