Restoring Government By People, For People

One of the many privileges of living in a democracy is the ability of each of us to have an equal say about how we are governed. Through elections, our lawmakers can be held accountable for how well they fight for the interests of the people they represent.

In theory, our legislature should be a reflection of the values and priorities that truly resonate with voters. However, thanks to decisions made by the Supreme Court in recent years and the resulting avalanche of money into our democracy, the ability for everyday Americans to have our concerns heard and addressed by our elected officials is dwindling.

In 2010, this nation’s highest court struck a massive blow to the promise of a government that is of the people, by the people, and for the people in its ruling on Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission. The court’s decision gave unprec- edented political power to big businesses by allowing them to spend unlimited sums of money influencing elections.

This drastic move, coupled with other damaging decisions, has helped to create a representative body that is far more responsive to the whims of big corporations and a small collec- tion of billionaires than to the needs of the American people. Americans are angry that their voices are increasingly hard to hear in the face of tremendous spending by wealthy special interests.

It might be easy to lose hope about a system that appears to be irrevocably broken. Moreover, sometimes the politics on Capi- tol Hill seem so endlessly complicated that it’s impossible to sort out the elected officials who are trying to fix the problem from those who are just trying to get reelected.

MARGE BAKER IS THE EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT OF PEOPLE FOR THE AMERICAN WAY. DISTRIBUTED VIA OTHERWORDS.