Article first published as Prostituted Government, America up for Sale on Technorati.

Baby Boomers are likely to remember the words spoken by John F. Kennedy during his inaugural address.

The youngest man ever elected president took office and wasted no time in reminding the American people of how different the world had become and of the responsibility placed upon our great nation. He pulled no punches in identifying the true enemies of humanity: “tyranny, poverty, disease and war itself.” And he concluded his speech with both a commitment to the task at hand and an admonishment for all Americans: “Ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.”

What would be the reaction today to a president asking for such patriotism? Yet in 1961, JFK’s call to unity and selflessness was arguably the hallmark of his address. His were words that could well have been spoken by Jefferson or Adams, even by Patrick Henry himself. How sad it is that things have changed so, in less than 50 years.

President Kennedy spoke out of love and respect for a nation built on high moral principles. He spoke of a nation that held the power to “abolish all forms of human poverty.” He called on all Americans to join him in the fight . . . and America responded with dedication and applause.

Today, the tables have turned. Americans don’t ask what they can do for their country; they don’t even see poverty as a mutual enemy. The new prescription for prosperity in America is not to fight tyranny and band together for the common good — it’s a call to social Darwinism, to every person for themselves. Fifty years ago the predominant mindset was one of abundance, where through unity we could achieve anything. Today, America is figuratively much smaller and weaker. The grand vision is all but lost. The belief is now in scarcity and a sense that only the few can truly prosper.

This change in paradigm has nothing to do with inevitability. It was and still is completely avoidable. The sad truth is that Americans have been sold a bad bill of goods wrapped in the trappings of good business. We sit now in the most dire economic straits in nearly a century, and instead of pulling together to fight our common foes, we’re allowing ourselves to be divided by those who benefit from our lack of unity.

Thomas Jefferson once said that, “Experience demands that man is the only animal which devours his own kind, for I can apply no milder term to the general prey of the rich on the poor.” This truth has been long understood and accepted, yet this is exactly what we, the American people, have allowed to happen in our country. The unity of the Kennedy era has been lost to the government-is-the-enemy doctrine espoused by Ronald Reagan and movement conservatism.

The 21^st Century American political system thrives on a state of dynamic tension where the two sides debate the same issues ad nauseam. Never reaching resolution, this ebb and flow produces, at best, incremental change, and in the end is essentially a lesson in futility. The structure is based on a two-party, zero sum shouting match where the only people who win are those who benefit from maintaining the status quo.

What’s needed is an alternative to this Sisyphean drama. We need real progress. We need a return to morality in politics, where money is confined as the currency of our capitalism and not of our democracy. Sadly, what we have instead is a near complete departure from anything of the sort.

Not only does truth in politics seem to be at an all-time low, but with the Supreme Court’s ruling on “Citizens United,” where corporations were granted personhood, the stream of falsehood and mudslinging deceit is so constant as to be virtually inescapable. America is now the great political prostitute of the planet, with more money being spent to buy votes through misinformation than at any time in any place. Hurray for America!

Is this really the political process that the American people want?  Is there any way that this caricature of democracy can lead to a government “of the people, by the people and for the people?”

This new dynamic has no place in the American political system. The Founding Fathers perceived the evils of corporate greed and did everything they could to ensure that the democracy could withstand their siege. Thomas Jefferson warned us of their thirst for control, “I hope we shall crush in its birth the aristocracy of our monied corporations which dare already to challenge our government to a trial by strength, and bid defiance to the laws of our country.” But modern conservatism has ignored his warning.

The conservative court’s decision that corporations are people has created a situation where, not only are vast sums of money being spent by corporate interests to influence the 2010 election, but the American electorate isn’t even afforded the right to know who’s behind the spending.

Under their new found freedom to influence elections, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is spending record amounts of money. Where their total for the 2008 elections was a mere $33.5 million, they promise to spend $75 million in 2010. And not only is the Chamber raising record amounts for its campaign spending from U.S. corporations, like Prudential Financial, Dow Chemical, A.I.G., Goldman Sachs and Chevron  Texaco, but they’re bringing in huge amounts from foreign companies who have a stake in American jobs, trade policies and tax regulations.

Of course, it’s easy to understand why the Republicans in the Senate fought to defeat the Disclose Act, which would have required disclosure of funding sources, since the vast majority of the corporate money is going to either support Republican candidates or defeat Democrats — a full 93% of the Chamber’s 70 ads, according to the New York Times. This statistic might help explain why only 10% of groups running ads in support of Republicans have revealed their funding sources, while 50% of Democratic supporters have.

Regardless of the outcome, it’s too late for the 2010 election. American politics has fallen into an abyss of moral decay. Monied interests are so firmly in control of the process and the tyranny of the elite is so prevalent that both Kennedy and Jefferson have to be turning in their graves. Tea Party patriots, as misguided as they may be, have the right idea — the American people need to take their country back. Hopefully, between now and the 2012 election, they’ll figure out that the government is not the enemy, and that it’s actually the instrument of their collective will.

One person, one vote — that was the intent. That is the only system that can work, and it can only be sustained through an informed, not misinformed electorate. Let us all hope that we might return to the high moral principles of our past, of our founding. Let us understand once again that we are One Nation, One People – E Pluribus Unum.

President Obama spoke to the people of America on Saturday. With the campaign season for the fall election heating up, his message was focused on the insidious effects of the Supreme Court’s decision on the Citizens United case. The President cited the recent “flood of attack ads, run by shadowy groups with harmless sounding names.” He contended that the people deserve to know who’s behind these campaign ads, and argued that the Disclose Act, which is being blocked by Senate Republicans, is an effective device to accomplish that end.

Legislation that’s directed at greater disclosure by donors, the Disclose Act would require, “special interest group officials to physically appear at the end of campaign ads they sponsor, acknowledging their campaign contributions.” It would also prevent foreign run entities from interfering in our election process, undoing another detrimental side effect of Citizens United. The bill was already passed by the House, with 2 Republicans voting in favor, along with all but 30 Democrats. But the legislation has been stalled since it reached the Senate.

Falling into the prevalent pattern of Senate dysfunction, the Disclose Act is just another bill to find itself the victim of Republican obstruction. Needing one more vote to gain cloture and avoid filibuster, Americans will not gain knowledge of the people behind the campaign ads unless Democrats can get at least one Republican to break ranks and put The People above the Party.

Asked for comment on the legislation, Mitch “Tax cuts pay for themselves” McConnell offered more nonsensical blather. According to McConnell, “The president says this bill is about transparency. It’s transparent all right. It’s a transparent effort to rig the fall elections.” So, in the Senate Minority Leader’s own words, informing voters of who’s paying for campaign attack ads somehow amounts to rigging the election.

I’m sure that Senator McConnell had no intent of supporting the President’s position, but based on his own comments, it’s hard to refute what President Obama had to say regarding Republican opposition to the bill, “This can only mean that the leaders of the other party want to keep the public in the dark.” The President added that, “They don’t want you to know which interests are paying for the ads. The only people who don’t want to disclose the truth are people with something to hide.”

The November election will be laced with illegitimate attack ads of all sorts, and those ads will come from both sides. This has long been the case, and now the problem has been magnified by the Citizens United decision. The Disclose Act is essential legislation that can’t prevent the ads, but can at least inform the voters who’s behind them. It’s like truth in advertising 101, and the Republicans want no part of it. That fact alone should call their position into question.

Concerned voters need to speak out and make sure their representatives understand that We the People want to know. Voters want transparency. Big-Money has already hijacked the American government, and the Supreme Court, through Citizens United, has given them yet another avenue to exert their will. Corporations are not people, and in the long term, our nation needs reform to undo the damage of this decision. Such reform is already underway in the form of a constitutional amendment carrying 74 cosponsors in the House. People can also voice their support at Free Speech for People.

Like campaign finance reform, the Disclose Act should have nothing to do with partisan differences. The fact that it is being debated along party lines should be sufficient cause to make people stand up and take notice. Citizens United was anti-democracy at its very worst. To fight against its reform is un-American.

There are 537 elected officials representing all Americans in our federal government. So, disregarding the inequalities that result from congressional district sizing and the 2-per-state allocation of Senate seats, this means that each elected official represents, on average, around 575,000 Americans. This number alone should raise an eyebrow or two, in that it begs the question of adequate representation, but while the ratio does further dilute the voice of the average person, its impact pales when compared to the effects of a government sold to the highest bidder.

Washington, long ago, lost any semblance of legitimate representation of The People. Being one voice in a half-million may seem weak, but the reality is that the average person’s voice is far smaller than that. Both the Presidency and the Congress of 21^st Century America have been purchased, and unless you have tens of thousands of dollars to contribute to election campaigns, you really have no voice at all.

Elections are costly. Contributions for the 2008 federal campaign totaled $5.3 billion. The average winner of a House seat spent $1.4 million while the average Senate seat went for $8.5 million. Sure, there are many small donors; in fact, about half of the 2008 money came from donations of under $200. Unfortunately, that means the other half came from larger donations, with $1.9 billion coming from donations over $2,300, and $974 million in large donations — over $10,000.

It’s these large donations that do more than merely help support a candidate; they are the currency of government. The average Joe, who donates $10 or $25 to their favorite candidate, expects nothing specific in return, but such is not the case for the Goldman Sachs of the world. As expected, in the shadow of the housing/banking crash, the 2008 election was largely financed by big banks, insurance companies and real estate. The largest contributor to the 2008 election, this sector donated $477 million. And companies like Goldman, who topped bank spenders at more then $7 million, and JPMorgan and Citigroup, who each coughed up over $5 million, don’t spend money unless it improves profits.

The fact that no financial reform legislation was passed, for more than two years after Bear Stearns crashed and started the collapse of the economy, is prima facie evidence of the power of campaign capital. It’s no coincidence that the top donor for Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT), the chair of the Senate’s committee for banking and housing, is the securities and banking sector — the very people he’s charged to oversee. The nearly $5 million investment the sector made in contributions, over the 2008 and 2010 cycles, to Dodd and the ranking committee Republican, Sen. Richard Shelby (R-AL), not only helped stall legislation for years, but it paid for the diluted excuse for “reform” that was finally passed.

This is but one example of business-as-usual in Washington.  Healthcare legislation wrangled its way through Congress for most of 2009, while the Health industry was busy greasing the skids with $84 million in campaign donations. Their investment was not in vain. It actually produced excellent returns, netting 32 million new government sponsored patients and nothing in the way of real reform. Energy, Communication/Electronics, Trial Lawyers, they’re all present, and they’re all spending millions to make sure that any legislation that’s passed is favorable to their business profits. With government so clearly under the control of big-business, is it any wonder why the 61.7% voter turnout for the 2008 election was the high-water mark since 1968?

American voters feel increasingly frustrated with Washington politics, and there’s good reason for it. Regardless of which party people support, it’s becoming more evident with every passing year that the will of The People is being ignored, their voices unheard beneath the din of the corporate campaign hijacking.

Angry conservatives are already gathering under banners proclaiming, “Take our country back!” But the loss of voice in Washington politics isn’t a partisan issue. Campaign funding for the 2010 election, and the control that goes with it, is nearly split down the middle between Democrats and Republicans. There may be legitimate political differences being liberal and conservative voters, but neither is served when special interests have bought and paid for the federal government.

If indeed the country is ever to be taken back, Americans from left and right must join forces on this critical issue. Together, they can put an end to big-money control of Congress. It’s time voters stop falling for the blatant misdirection of party talking points and start demanding results. The American people can take back control of the nation, and the surest path to that end is through real campaign finance reform.

The sad truth is that while votes are the mechanism by which politicians are elected, it’s money that makes campaigns — and campaigns are the means through which votes are secured. Today’s system ensures that elected officials are beholding to the big-money donors who finance their election. The People are but pawns in this game of quid pro quo, and they will remain so until and unless they unite and change the system that allows this corruption to exist.

Like students left with the huge loan balances, the present system ensures that our elected officials are left with huge favor balances on their books. To think that politicians will bite the hand that feeds them and vote against the interests of their big-money benefactors is delusional at best. To take back the country, The People must take back the Congress, and to take back the Congress, the politicians must once again be beholding, not to influence peddling special interests, but to the people who elect them. One person, one vote must again reflect the control of the nation.

There’s only one way to make this happen, and that’s through public financing of elections. It’s already working in several states in the form of Clean Elections. And there’s a bipartisan bill in the House and also the Senate to bring similar reform to Washington. Public financing will require that candidates secure significant funding in small donations from their constituents before qualifying for public money. But once established as a viable candidate, public funding would be allocated in amounts sufficient to finance a competitive campaign.

The power of such a system is obvious. For a relatively small investment, American voters could actually ensure that elected officials would owe their loyalty to no one but the people who elected them. It would in essence break the favor bank.

But the benefits of public campaign financing don’t end with properly placed loyalties. The investment would also pay dividends in productivity, as it would mitigate the demand for fund raising by incumbents. In the present system, officials start focusing on the next election cycle as soon as they’re elected. Estimates place fund raising efforts for members of Congress at 20% to 40% of their time. With so much misuse of time, is it any wonder they get so little done? It’s like a business that pays its employees to look for another job two days out of every week.

Public campaign finance is not a silver bullet; it won’t by itself bring the federal government back under the control of The People, but without it — there is no hope of that happening. The removal of special interest influence on election campaigns is a critical first step for Americans to take back the country. Couple public financing with preferential voting, which would allow a significant increase in votes for third party candidates, add congressional term limits and weld shut the revolving lobbyist door, and America may once again return to a government of the people, by the people, for the people.