The recent dust-up between Senators Cruz & Feinstein laid bare the problem with D.C. – Too many of these people have been in power much too long. They are completely out of touch with their constituents and covered in the mud of the corruption that comes with lobbyists’ easy money & access to them; especially once they start chairing powerful committees, as Feinstein does. And how does one get to chair a committee? Longevity… And around and around we go. The longer you are there, the more corrupt & out of touch you are, but it’s only then you get real power via committee chairmanships, which, because you are so thoroughly entrenched, you can now keep by using the lobbyist money your corruption has bought to buy your next election victory and the disgusting merry-go-round goes round and round.

This has got to stop.

Since I am against term limits (The harder solution is the right one:  an educated populace.  I embrace that we get the government we deserve.  For good or ill.  I don’t see any reason to change that. ) there’s got to be another way.  But what?

I know how.

Ready?

It’s kinda radical.

People may not like it.

But it’s do-able – and not so nuts if you just let it marinate a little before you pass judgement on it.

The advent of the digital age makes this possible:

We need to structure being a Rep or Senator like being a member of the National Guard, and function like being the President.

Let that sink in:  STRUCTURE like National Guard. FUNCTION like President.

Here’s how, with a few tweaks:

A member of the National Guard only has to put the uniform on one weekend per month. I would extend that to one week per month for the Hill. They only have to come to D.C. one week per month. That’s it. I would be HAPPY to pay for ALL their travel expenses to and from. (“I” meaning we taxpayers should happily fund this.) They can fly FIRST CLASS. Happy to pay for it. Happy to pay for them to have first class car rentals, too. Even limo service for the entire week if they want it. No problem. First class all the way. It’s a small price to pay for putting a stop in the revolving door of influence in the Capital.  It will do A LOT to break up the K Street sewer pipe that leads to the Hill.

I’m not so naive as to believe it’s a 100% cure, but it’s a start. A *big* one.  This way, if some lobby wants to bribe the House, they’ll have to pay for airfare/car/hotel/expenses to at least 215 districts around the country instead of just cab fare to 215 fancy D.C. lunches. (You know they do that, right?  They’re not allowed to meet with lobbyists on the Hill so they do it at cafes/restaurants in D.C.).

I’ll tell you what else I’d do: Condos. Bi-partisan ones. As much as the math would allow, I’d put one Republican and one Democrat in each one. FORCE them to live together. It’s only one week per month. They can manage.

Besides, they’ll be pampered: I’d build a gorgeous, gated condo complex for these 535 elected representatives of the people. Two bedroom luxury condos. First class all the way. Each bedroom would have it’s own bathroom so they don’t even have to share the bathroom. I’d do this though:  Make the bedroom big enough only for a king-sized bed.  Not even enough room for a chair.  Know why? FORCE THEM INTO THE COMMUNAL LIVING ROOM if they want to sit on a sofa and watch T.V.

Think of it this way:  If they can’t manage putting a coaster under their scotch glass so they don’t leave a ring on the table (because they WILL be charged – EXORBITANTLY – for damage to these condos & their contents) or who has to pick up the milk for morning coffee, then they can’t possibly manage anything legislatively. Let ’em negotiate the little stuff.  Baby steps.  Maybe it’ll help things on the Hill.  That’s the whole point of this little bipartisan roommate stuff.  Negotiate coasters under scotch glasses and before you know it, we’ll have a balanced budget 😉

I’d even give them daily maid service. They can even have someone doing their laundry. EVERYTHING will be done for them so they can focus entirely on the task at hand: SERVING THEIR CONSTITUENTS which they will now have to LIVE WITH 75% OF THE TIME.

I would do something else: I would keep their salaries at the present level (which I believe is $180k or around that amount) but I would index it to cost of living in their home district. It’s only fair. It just doesn’t cost as much to live in Oklahoma as it does NYC.

One more thing: I would require that they each have a personal photographer follow them during every minute of their waking hours and waiting outside wherever it is they sleep to follow them when they emerge awake (obviously we would need a rotating staff of these folks). I want them tracked.  If the photographers lack the skills to track a pol who knows how to give them a slip then fine:  we’ll pay for ex-CIA or some other similarly skilled individual who can act as photographer. I want to know if they are meeting lobbyists at Starbucks. I want documentary evidence of their every move during their waking hours. I want it posted on line so their constituents can see a “living diary” of their activities.  I want a human being and a card reader at the gate so we know their coming & going from the condo.  I want someone following them whenever they are not at home (in their condo).  I want a camera lens on them EVERY SINGLE HOUR outside the condo.

Don’t like it? The PRESIDENT has this done. WHY NOT CONGRESS? We know where the President is 24/7. He has his own photographer OUTSIDE the Residence (and even inside, to an extent). I JUST WANT THE SAME DAMNED THING FOR MY ELECTED REPRESENTATIVES.

It’s a small price to pay. In fact, I’d bet it ends up being cheaper – MUCH CHEAPER – than the current system because it will save us untold billions in wasted corrupt money.

Still don’t like it? Fine. Don’t be a member of congress. But again, the PRESIDENT has this type of coverage so why not the 535?

ADDENDUM:  Their computers, blackberries, or other hardware, will be issued by the Federal Government.  Their accounts, on these devices, will be issued & managed by the Federal Government.  THEY WILL NOT BE ALLOWED TO HAVE, ACCESS, POSSESS OR IN ANY WAY HAVE ANY OTHER DIGITAL PRESENCE ON THE INTERNET.  If they are even seen touching a computer at the Apple Store or in a public library THEY WILL BE REMOVED FROM OFFICE IMMEDIATELY AND ALL CONTENTS OF THEIR DIGITAL/PHYSICAL OFFICES TURNED OVER FOR INSPECTION.

EVERYTHING will be archived.  They will NOT have any personal internet accounts AT ALL but WILL be allowed the following:  members of their families or other VERIFIED loved ones/relatives will be ALSO be issued hardware with approved emails/accounts.  Those emails/accounts will be EXCLUDED from FOIA requests BUT they WILL be MONITORED for fraud.  We don’t want Cousin Susie actually being a lobbyist for Raytheon.  Again, the loss of privacy is the price you pay going in.  You know this is the deal and you decide before you throw your hat in the ring that you & your family consent to it.  If you don’t like it, don’t run.

Again:  This pol TOUCHING another piece of hardware is grounds for IMMEDIATE removal.  Their condos (the only place they are not subject to photography) will be monitored for foreign hardware addresses.  If they are caught using a piece of unauthorized internet-enabled hardware inside their condos THEY ARE REMOVED FROM OFFICE whether it’s their fault or not. PERIOD.  Same with their home offices, where they will now be spending 75% of their time.  Same with their homes.  Doesn’t matter if they have a teenager friend of their kid’s coming over and using the internet at their house. TOO BAD.  You lose that luxury when you become an elected pol.  If you want to have something other than federally issued internet-enabled hardware in your house YOU CAN’T. PERIOD. TOO BAD.  Tell your kids to meet their friends at the library if they want to use their friend’s iPhone.  If they have friends over their friends will have to LEAVE THEIR DEVICES WITH THE SECRET SERVICE AGENT ASSIGNED TO PROTECT THEIR PROPERTY 24/7 and they will get it back when they leave. PERIOD.

ABSOLUTELY NONE of the digital communications this pol & his family will have will be private. NONE.  It will be ALL be archived.  ALL OF IT.  Again, with the FOIA exception for family, which is verified in advance and monitored for integrity.

How extensive will this be?  They will agree, upon election, to turn over (or consent to have FBI collect 😉 TEN YEARS of digital communications. TEN.  Because even 5 years is too few, because it takes about that long to plan a campaign – in some cases – and a particularly clever pol could start scrubbing their life that soon.  No. I want TEN YEARS of ALL digital communications. Phones, faxes, cell phones, internet accounts, ALL of it.  That way they can’t exclude Cousin Susie from the list of those who should be issued federal hardware because ten years of records will show significant communication, thus, warranting inclusion on the list of issuance/monitoring.