Summary: March 26, 2001

Forum Day 6: Choice #2: Rein in Lobbyists and Politicians.

This was the second day of a two-day deliberation about Choice #2, which calls for such measures as restricting lobbyists and for expanding the use of recall votes and ballot measures (voter initiatives and referenda) to combat the corrupting influence of money on politics.

Toward the end of this last day of deliberation of Choice #2, 114 out of over 200 registered forum participants had made at least one posting since the beginning of the forum.

Note: Postings appearing after this summary was written will be included in the next day's summary.

Participants continued to discuss what they see as valuable and/or troubling about aspects of this choice. The deliberation focused mainly on lobbyists, ballot measures, and voter recall of elected officials. Here are some of the aspects of each of those areas that participants concentrated on.

About Lobbyists and Lobbying:

• Although campaign finance reform is a step in the right direction, restricting lobbyists goes further
• Lobbyists can be both detrimental and beneficial to the public's interest
• Lobbyists are sometimes seen as blocking the public's access to legislators
• Special interests are seen as "buying what they want" through lobbyists
• There should be a balance of paid and unpaid lobbyists
• Restricting or eliminating lobbying may tread on free speech
• Lobbying plays an important role in the political process
• Removing the money from lobbying would help restore the system of lobbying to its original good role

About Ballot Measures (Initiatives and Referenda):

• These are tools that are too often abused
• They can have unintended consequences
• They should be used with great care
• Sometimes the result is the creation of contradictory laws
• Ballot measures are often much too numerous and too complex for voters to be able to become well-informed about

About Recall Votes:

• They may serve to make elected officials more accountable to the public
• Can counterbalance "entrenched power" and "entrenched corruption"
• May serve as an antidote to citizens' feelings of helplessness and ineffectiveness
• They highlight the importance of voting and may restore its power
• They might be misused to eliminate "opposing views"
• Voters want and need a stronger role in the scheme of things and this might be one way to get it

Some of the repeating themes during the days' deliberation:

• That there is a strong desire for more "transparency" in the political system; easily understandable, fully disclosed and accessible information for the public
• That becoming and staying informed and publicly engaged can be a "massive job"
• There is significant concern that too much of the pubic is uninformed, self absorbed, apathetic, or perhaps content with things as they are

The intent of each day's summary is to capture the essence of the conversation. It is for the benefit of participants and for others who may be observing the forum, or may be interested in the topic, or in the process. Comments on the summaries, as well as on any aspect of the forum, are as always, more than welcome.

Patty Dineen
Online Forum Reporter, March 26, 2001