How to reform lobbying in three easy steps

[dolstein]

1. Require that members of Congress promptly report any private meetings with registered lobbyists.
2. Ban all gifts from registered lobbyists -- including meals and travel.
3. Public financing of all elections.

Ok, it's not that easy. (1) and (2) could happen, but in the end, things won't really change unless you have (3). Lobbyists and the groups they represent pour so much money into campaigns that you wind up with a Congress stuffed with members who are already sympathetic to the arguments these lobbyists make.

[Sammy Pepys]

1. Number 1

Unworkable for a handful reasons, not limited to the ones here:

1) Report it to whom? What are they going to do with it? Is there going to be a black list or something? Rolls of resgistered lobbyists differ greatly depending on the source. One person registered as lobbyist on the House side might not show up in the Senate records at all (since the House lists over 20,000 lobbyists on record compared to the Senate's 13,000...not to mention the differing numbers other entities carry).

2) Not only do Members have dozens of meetings a day, but so do their staffs, not to mention committee staffs who don't work under one single member. The amount of paperwork this would generate on a daily basis would be huge, and there'd be no efficient, immediate way to monitor it.

3) It wouldn't stop people who are not registered as lobbyists from going in and stumping for approps and essentially lobbying the office. Companies small and large alike do this all the time.

[Virginia Dare]

2. I would add a #4

stop the revolving door between the Hill and K Street.