I applaud this site and Sen Obama. Fight The Smears.

I also applaud the notice sent by the DNC stating they will not accept campaign money from lobbiests or PACs.

What pieces of the equation need help?  

First to cite the obvious...these laws can only be changed by the very people who currently benefit from them as they are.

Popular vote vs. Electoral College:

I believe we need to eliminate the electoral college and count the votes. Please see more and promote this movement of states doing just that on a state-by-state basis. While it may be a tough road to amend the US Constitution, by altering the procedures in each state to count the popular vote, the Electoral College becomes nothing more than a quaint club, required to elect the candidate with the most votes.

National Popular Vote.

Check my poll online and participate.

Finances:

Did you ever see a poor person in public office? Did you ever see anyone who is even a true "middle class" citizen in office. Rare indeed.

They say money is the root of all evil and that certainly applies to politics as well. With the high cost of media and travel and printing, a national campaign costs many millions of dollars per candidate. No one, outside of the likes of Bill Gates and his billionaire buddies, has the resources to fund a campaign out of their own pocket.

Enter those with the money. Big Business mostly. No one gives something without expecting something in return. No major corporation is going to fund honest and free will in any candidate. They all have an agenda and are willing to spend millions to reach their own goals. They have found that the golden rule is true, "He who has the gold makes the rules." ( See Bankruptcy Law )

In the end it is your vote and my vote that, together, wins the office. No one has ever offered me money to vote a certain way...that is illegal. Everyone spends money trying to convince me to vote for their candidate, hence the huge cost of elections.

Once elected the candidate is not grateful to you or me for our "one vote each". They forgot us and turn to repaying their debt to those who handed them the millions they spent to convince us to vote for them. To passing laws to benefit the rich at our expense.

What is needed is a means to disconnect Big money from political campaigns. Laws need to be changed to plug the holes and assure that no company or no "organized group" may donate to any candidate. Period. That only individual citizens may contribute and then only up to a specified fixed limit. No campaign should be permitted to accept any check from any source for any amount in excess of this limit. Period.

FCC rules need to be changed to provide for air time on an equal basis. Broadcasting companies use public airwaves allotted by the FCC to earn millions of dollars. In addition to their requirement to provide a certain minimum of public service as a condition of continued licensing, broadcasters need to be required to provide an allotment of air time for certified candidates to air their positions and educate the American public. They must also allow equal time to each such candidate.

A federal fund must be established to pay for election costs for all certified candidates and no candidate should be permitted to spend more than has been deposited in those funds.

Any money contributed by citizens must be deposited into the Federal Funds for the party or candidate specified on the contributor's check, who's identity shall remain sealed until after the elections. Any check missing a party/candidate declaration could either be returned or deposited to the "general fund".

The candidate and his family, of course, may contribute as any private citizen, but only to the same amount as all others are held.

Who is "certified" as a candidate? For state offices this is a state matter. The funding rules should be replicated in each state. The only nation wide office this would apply to would be for the President of the United States. Certification would follow two stages. Primary and General Election funds. A contribution could be made separately to each.

Term Limits

We have them in some states. The president is subject to a limit of two terms. Why not Congress?

Part of the problem we have is that people get elected and stay forever, accumulating power and influence far beyond the numbers they represent in their home districts. They hold onto their supporters ( not you and me )  for years and become associated with particular special interest groups.

Set terms to two consecutive terms in office. I would also amend the Constitution to specifically allow a person to hold the office of President for additional terms provided he/she could still hold no more than two consecutive terms.