Green Party should be at the head of democratic reform

By Eric A Meece

Corporate campaign contributions should not be accepted by the Green Party. We should avoid taking contributions by any special interest. We must "out reform" the Reform Party.

I think instead that the Greens should be as clean and reform minded as possible. No party should outdo the Greens on democratic political reform. We should "out reform" the Reform Party. There should be no question about where we stand, and nothing should muddy the issue.

Democratic reform is one of our "4 pillars." It is a core value for Greens. We will lose far more from departing from this value, than we will lose by not accepting corporate contributions. Our appeal is that we are different; we are an alternative. If we accept corporate or other special interests contributions, we become the Gremoplicans. We become no different than the two parties from whom we profess to be different.

Money is inherently corrupting in politics. We become subject to the influence of whomever gives us money. It is clear that the main reason politics does not function properly in this country is because the two major parties and politicians in both parties are bought and paid for by huge corporations and other special interests, and are at the beck and call of their lobbyists. Even George W. Bush openly admits that campaign finance reform "would be bad for Republicans." Countless measures we need, such as environmental laws, health care reform and gun control, have been stopped due to the efforts of lobbyists who finance their campaigns. An additional problem is the fact that politicians have to spend so much time raising money for TV ads that they have no time to do their jobs.

People who want to support us financially can donate to us in reasonable amounts as individuals instead of as corporations and special interests. Accepting money from corporations is especially troublesome to me, because we bill ourselves as the anti-corporate party. I also think that we should not take contributions from lawyers, labor unions, nurses or other special interest groups, because however well intentioned these groups may be, and however we may agree with their goals, our opponents can then rightly say that we are in THEIR pocket, as fully as they are in the pocket of corporations.

We don't need their money. We can win elections the way Audie Bock herself originally did-- by offering ourselves as the alternative to politics as usual. People are looking for this today, and sometimes will actually elect people who represent this. Our strength is and will be from the grass roots; from volunteers and individual donors. We need to focus our efforts, not on raising funds from the powers that be, but on advocating and working for campaign finance reform as the essential part of democratic reform.

I support proportional representation and instant runoff voting as democratic reforms, but it is clear that their main appeal to Greens is that they benefit us and our chances of getting elected. Campaign finance reform is the essential step that will make our politics more democratic for everyone, whether or not Greens are elected. We should advocate what is right, as well as what is good for the fortunes of the Green Party.

We need campaign finance reform. We need to eliminate soft money, require TV stations to broadcast speeches and debates by candidates, limit overall spending, and provide limited public financing. I pledge to continue to advocate this position within the Green Party, uphold it in my campaign, and promote it within the affairs of the county Party.

Eric A. Meece, County Council, Green Party of Santa Clara County