A
Contract with American for 2010
By DICK MORRIS
Published on
TheHill.com on August 9, 2010
My observations from the campaign trail are
that this year's elections will be a total and complete disaster for
the Democratic Party. In fact, it will amount to the obliteration of
an entire generation of Democratic officeholders. It will become
very rare to find a youngish baby boomer white Democrat in elective
office in the United States. I believe that almost half of the white
Democratic congressmen who are seeking reelection will lose!
A wipeout of this magnitude cannot be explained, alone, by Obama's
ratings or his policies. He has fallen sharply since he took office,
but even ratings in the 40s do not explain this type of result. It
is increasingly obvious that Congress has earned much of this
disaster by itself, quite unrelated to Obama. The vision of the
deal-making that accompanied healthcare was too disgusting for the
average American to stomach. And now the failure of the Congress to
expel Reps. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) and Maxine Waters (D-Calif.)
underscores its inability to police itself.
 |
Republicans should embrace specific ethical reforms, which they should showcase in their campaign advertising in 2010. These positive ads will do as much as any good negative to underscore the difference between a Republican challenger and a Democratic incumbent. |
The reforms should include:
• The establishment of an office of special prosecutor for Congress,
with its head appointed by the chief justice of the U.S. Supreme
Court for a fixed term. The office should have subpoena power, a
well-funded staff and the right to convene grand juries and issue
indictments. Self-policing by ethics committees obviously does not
work.
• All earmarking should be banned. Congress cannot be trusted with
this power.
• A ban on spouses of members of Congress serving on boards or
accepting employment by any company or organization that receives
federal funds. In cases like Mrs. Chris Dodd and Mrs. Evan Bayh,
corporate board employment was a way for special interests to
influence their husbands and pad the family checkbook.
• A ban on families of members of Congress serving as lobbyists.
• No free travel, whether sponsored by foundations or lobbyists.
Only government trips on official business -- real business --
should be allowed.
• Full disclosure of the precise amounts of members' net worth,
debts, investments and holdings, including home mortgages.
• Full publication, online, of all committee votes.
• No student loan repayments for congressional staffers.
• A five-year ban on lobbying for members of Congress or their
staffs after leaving office. The ban should also apply to employment
by a company that performs lobbying services.
• If a senator or congressman is absent more than 10 percent of the
time for reasons other than illness -- including running for
president -- his pay should be docked proportionately.
• Term limits for congressional staffers. No staff member of
Congress should be permitted to serve in a job that pays above
$100,000 a year for more than eight years. If we can't get term
limits for Congress, let's at least clean out the professional
staffers!
A smart candidate in 2010 will take elements of these proposals --
particularly the special prosecutor -- and put them in his or her
campaign ads. Cashing in on Obama's unpopularity and his failed
agenda is only half the battle. Capitalizing on the dismal state of
congressional ethics is the other part!
RED SKY IN THE MORNING:
CIC agents thought they were communist spies. The Philippine
constabulary just wanted them dead. Two men made it out alive - one
didn't.
Go to
DickMorris.com to read all of Dick's columns!
________________________________
PLEASE FORWARD THIS E-MAIL TO FRIENDS AND FAMILY AND
TELL THEM THEY CAN GET THESE COLUMNS E-MAILED TO THEM FOR FREE BY
SUBSCRIBING AT
DICKMORRIS.COM!
THANK YOU!
***COPYRIGHT EILEEN MCGANN AND DICK MORRIS 2010.