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Public asked to shape open-government bill
[Quote:]
“Any time that we can hear directly from the American people and not paid lobbyists, it is a good thing,” said U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, who has sponsored several open-government initiatives.
The idea of letting the public shape legislation levels the playing field between affluent groups that can afford lobbyists and the public, Cornyn said.
The idea was not as well received by Paul Miller, past president of the American League of Lobbyists. Miller says lobbyists are unfairly portrayed as backroom-deal makers.
There is more transparency in legislation than ever before, Miller said. But he disagrees with putting bills up for all to rewrite.
“I don’t think the way you advocate is to put everything online and say, ‘All right American people, weigh in on that,’ because then what’s next?” Miller asked. “Are we going to let the American people decide our defense policy, our trade policy, our immigration policy?”
Uhm… yes?
[Quote:]
de·moc·ra·cy /dɪˈmɒkrəsi/
1. government by the people; a form of government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised directly by them or by their elected agents under a free electoral system.
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I always remember the words of the President from the popular series “The West Wing”:
‘Gentlemen, let me remind you that the United States is a Republic, not a Democracy”
The United States is the world’s oldest surviving federation. It is a constitutional republic, “in which majority rule is tempered by minority rights protected by law.”[47]
47: ^ Scheb, John M., and John M. Scheb II (2002). An Introduction to the American Legal System. Florence, KY: Delmar, p. 6. ISBN 0766827593.
I know, I know.
It is fundamentally structured as a representative democracy,
But I have to point out it is not a democracy, it is structured like a democracy.
And lobbyists are a minority. Their rights are protected by the law.
That still fits the dictionary definition…
In a sense yes. But a structure is - relatively - easy to change, the constitutional form of government is not.
So, the democratic part can be changed or even ignored, the republic part can’t.
Of course easy and difficult is relative, not the “snap of the finger” level. Although, the last 8 years can make you doubt about that.