Not sure if anyone noticed, but I’ve been neglecting this blog lately. Too many fish in the barrel, not enough bullets. And others doing it much better, which is a good thing. 

But I’m surprised there isn’t much discussion (that I’ve seen) on the post-Trump reform agenda. We could need one sooner than we think - or later than we fear. In any case, here’s my two cents. This list focuses on institutional/structural changes - hopefully these are acceptable to people of all ideological stripes who are interested in strengthening democratic self-government rather than narrow partisan interests. Many will need constitutional amendments, and some are more realistic than others. But we have to start somewhere. 

 Prosecutors and judges 

1. The Attorney General becomes a non-political, non-partisan post. Yeah, you can still have a “Secretary of Justice” or whatever for policy issues, but prosecutions under federal law should be independent from political influence. Have the AG serve one, nonrenewable 10 year term, appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate, but cannot be removed except for gross incompetence/malfeasance. FBI reports to the AG. 

2. AG appoints US attorneys for fixed, staggered terms, say 6-8 years. Again, cannot be removed without cause. AG can choose to appoint special prosecutors for special cases. 

3.  All written and verbal communications by officials in the executive or legislative branch with the AG, other federal prosecutors or the FBI are matters of public record. 

4.  Federal district and appellate judges serve for fixed terms, say 12 years. Supreme Court justices maybe 16 years. 

 Campaign finance 

5. Sources and amounts of all donations to political candidates, causes or organizations greater than $1000 in a calendar year are matters of public record. This applies to any donation, in cash or kind, to anyone who seeks public office, and to any person or organization that communicates against others seeking public office, or advocates on an issue that is currently subject to political debate 

 The president 

6. The president becomes fully subject to executive branch ethics rules. 

7. The president must release complete financial info, including tax returns, assets and debts, and eliminate any financial conflicts of interest and all foreign sources of income by the time of his/her inauguration. If s/he fails to do so, this automatically triggers impeachment proceedings. 

8. If the president is impeached and removed from office, the vice president serves in a caretaker role until new elections are held, no later than six months after the president leaves office. 

 The Senate 

9. No more Senate filibuster. However, all matters of substance in the Senate must be approved by a majority of senators and by a majority of population represented by those senators as measured at the most recent census. A bill would become law if it passes the House by a majority, and both tallies in the Senate. Kamala Harris would have 37 million votes, Mike Rounds of South Dakota would have 814,000. Right-wingers will be happy to learn that Ted Cruz gets 25 million votes. 

10. Senate vacancies are filled by prompt special elections, not gubernatorial appointment (this always bothered me). 

 Elections 

11. No more electoral college. President chosen by nationwide popular vote.

12. No more party primaries, at any level. All elections have two rounds: if no one gets more than 50% in the first round, the top two candidates compete in the second. This would be a big culture shock at the presidential level, but I think we could make it work. 

13. Congressional and state-legislative district lines to be set by independent commissions with equal representation of both major parties and representation by minor parties. Agreement of reps of both major parties on these commissions needed for final approval, and districts must meet broad federal guidelines (contiguity, racial balance etc). 

14.  You want voter ID? OK, anyone who shows up at a polling place (which opens two weeks before election day) with a valid photo ID that proves citizenship can vote and is automatically registered for the next eight years. So no chance for voter fraud (which is virtually nonexistent anyway) and no more convoluted requirements for advance registration. You can get a special voter ID based on address-based forms of identification (birth certificate + bank statement etc) from your local DMV or elections office, without a fee, up to two weeks before the election, also valid for 8 years. 

15.  Ballots are mailed to all registered voters four weeks before the election. Completed ballots can be mailed in or dropped off at a polling place at any time thereafter. 

16. For those who wish to vote in person, voting machines must meet strict security and transparency guidelines, including published software and an auditable paper trail. 

17.  Every election will automatically be audited (ie a sample of precincts/counties will have their votes hand-counted); any irregularities will trigger a broader recount. 

18. A county where officials are found to have harassed, intimidated or otherwise restricted voters will have its elections federally administered for the next ten years. A state that has three or more such counties will have all of its elections federally administered for the next ten years. 

 Miscellaneous 

19. No more penny. WTF is worth two cents? 

20. You want to sell health insurance across state lines? OK, health insurance can be sold across state lines, but the health insurance industry is now regulated at the federal rather than the state level. Actually all insurance should be regulated at the federal level. 

21. No more debt limit. Come on, it’s a stupid idea. 

22. If the appropriations bill for an authorized federal agency or department is not passed by the end of the fiscal year, the previous year’s appropriation is automatically renewed, with an inflation adjustment. So no more government shutdowns. 

23. Members of Congress can be prosecuted for insider trading based on knowledge they acquire as part of their legislative activities.

24.  The District of Columbia gets either the senators and representatives it would be entitled to if it were a state, or statehood. 

25. Puerto Rico gets either statehood or (once its finances are straightened out) independence. 

26.  Civics classes made mandatory in all schools, public or private. These will cover how the government works, how citizenship works, how to critically read news coverage, how to judge the reliability of news sources, how to engage in public debate, and how to distinguish facts from opinions.

Anyway, that’s my agenda. What’s yours?

Closing Up Shop and Shutting Down the Museums?

by: Zoe V. Speas

It’s finally here. The long-awaited school trip of an eighth grade class from Small Town, USA to Washington D.C. The itinerary has been set, tickets purchased, museums targeted as essential tourism destinations.

After many hours and countless dollars spent in tolls, fuel, and hotel reservations, they’ve arrived inside the city limits of our nation’s capital, which teems with experiences that will last any young student and their chaperones for a lifetime.

And then it hits - the shutdown.

Imagine the young minds and future leaders of our country as they tumble out of cramped seats on overcrowded buses. Imagine as they arrive upon the steps of the National Museum of American History or theUnited States Holocaust Museum or ANY BRANCH OF THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION to discover:

This Museum has been closed due to the shutdown of the Federal Government. It will reopen when the Federal Government resumes operations.

This is where it hits home. The cultivation of knowledge and historical significance effectively impeded by the inability of our leaders in Washington, D.C. to come to an agreement about the appropriations of funds?

On the United States Government homepage, with its oddly disconcerting slogan - “Government Made Easy” - a list of the effects of the government shutdown may be found for information on what exactly the shutdown means to us.

There’s a long bulleted list of the institutions whose operations have been suspended, followed by a shorter list of five vital organizations of the government that proceed uninhibited by the shutdown. See below.

This is by no means to diminish from these aspects of our government as any less significant than we hold them to be. They continue to operate because we, on an individual level, would be virtually unable to function without them. 

That being said, look at the museum webpages for our invaluable government-funded programs in Washington, D.C.

The Museum of American History.

The United States Holocaust Museum.

The National Park Service.

The American Art Museum.

All closed.

Fun activity?

Click on the museums found on the Government-sponsored museum homepage and explore the various manners - and various level of subtlety - with which each website has used to announce the suspension of their activities. 

When her home catches fire, a mother looks immediately towards her child out of an instinct to save and protect. The fire alarm goes off in our place of work or in our homes, and we reach out to grab the items we cannot live without. It’s human nature.

Yesterday, the fire that threatened us to make the toughest choices as citizens of our country closed the doors to museums, barricaded memorials, and left the trash to sit uncollected in the National Mall as a result of the first government shut-down in 17 years.

At the end of the day, we let art and history burn for the sake of the greater good. 

We’ll pick up the pieces and reopen the doors when the fire goes out. We’ll be grateful for the soldiers who continued to defend our freedom, for the prison guards and air traffic controllers who kept us safe, and to the government workers who delivered our paychecks.

But are we brave enough to look a little deeper and ask the uncomfortable questions? Can we live with the implications of our choices?

Examine what this says about our country. Our government. Our culture and our people. What does it say about you?