An old expression asserts that sometimes the only way to get the attention of even the most beloved family mule is to whack him up alongside the head with a board. I’m extending the adage to the mule’s sire, the donkey, and adding a dose of tough love to arrive at a message for that political party we Greens usually consider the lesser of two evils. Simply put, if you well-meaning folks over at the Democratic Party would kindly make a conscious and concerted effort to uphold your own historical values, we’d be much better friends and allies in the struggle to extend democracy to all Americans.

A good start would be taking a hard look at a form of choosing leaders that rewards not big ideas, but big bucks. Less than 1% of the U.S. population contributes more than 80% of the money in federal elections. No one seriously believes (although as we shall see, some say they do) that givers of large campaign donations - be they political action committees or corporations, Republicans or Democrats - don’t reap better access to the ears of policymakers than those millions of citizens unable or unwilling to contribute more. And yet how often do we hear - or more to the point demand to hear - the "serious" Democratic presidential contenders address the crisis of government for sale?

On November 28 I attended a remarkably under-promoted “listening session” staged in Socorro by current republican New Mexico congresswoman Heather Wilson, who just happens to be running for the U.S. Senate. Of course the occasion was really a quickie campaign stop, an opportunity for Heather to address the local faithful while avoiding those who might take her to task for her chumminess with the cabal currently under siege in the White House.

The candidate’s modus operandi was to ask the small group in attendance for their points of concern, then recite her views. As people’s issues emerged - the war in Iraq, global warming, health care, the economy – I was struck by how much this felt like a Norman Rockwell painting, as if these good citizens really only wanted to be reassured that most everything is all right, and those things that aren’t soon will be.

Desperate to break the spell, I suggested to the congresswoman that millions of us Americans are deeply concerned about the expanding role of money in elections, and asked if she supports Clean Elections legislation in Congress that would allow taxpayers to voluntarily provide for candidates' campaign expenses.

I don’t believe Heather expected to field this question. Her response basically went like this: the fact she was here listening to me, someone who contributed nothing to her last $5 million campaign, was directly equivalent to the kind of access given in Washington to those who give millions.

I didn’t find the congresswoman’s response sincere, and told her so. Still she persisted, repeating the false claim that publicly-funded campaigns force taxpayers to pay extra. The truth is she and others who depend on large injections of cash fear Clean Elections systems like those passed into law by voters in seven states. Today some form of Clean Elections has been enacted by voters in Maine, Vermont, Arizona, North Carolina, New Jersey, Connecticut, and – surprise! New Mexico, where the system has recently been expanded from Public Regulation Commission races to statewide judicial elections. Albuquerque has instituted Clean Elections campaigning for its city council seats, as has Portland, Oregon. Santa Fe is poised to follow suit.

As awkward a personality as Heather Wilson is, I actually think she’d prefer doing her job above beating the bushes for money all the time. But I doubt her obedience to George W. Bush’s failed politics would pass muster with New Mexico voters if she found herself on a level playing field among candidates brimming with real ideas and beholden only to voters. Certainly Lockheed Martin (who gave her $29,750 in 2006) would not be happy, nor would Yates Petroleum ($24,350), Northrop Grumman (20,650), or a long list of other companies. Neither would her friends in the oil and gas ($149,350), real estate ($139,670), and electric utility ($116,133) sectors be so well-served.

But the Greens and the Democrats – even many Republicans - might find a level of peace in the renewal of democracy, where ideas must stand on their own merits rather than on the purchasing power of their sponsors.

You can learn much more about the Clean Elections movement by rummaging through CommonCause.org, PublicCampaign.org (they have a video), or OpenSecrets.org. Bone up on New Mexico developments at Common Cause's “states” toolbar, or by visiting VotingMatters.net.

Dave Wheelock is a member of the Oneida Nation who keeps finding himself writing about democracy. Reach him at davewheelock (all one word) at yahoo.com. Mr. Wheelock's views do not necessarily represent those of Socorro News, but frequently do.

Copyright 2007, Dave Wheelock; all rights reserved.