In Defense of Lobbying

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/28/AR2008022803232.html?referrer=emailarticle

Krauthammer raises some good points and I think it is important not to attack lobbyists for the constitutionally protected right they have to do their job. For clean election advocates, the main issue is that the power of some lobbyists is greater than others based solely on the wealth that lies behind their interest. A lobbyists for Exxon/Mobil who wants to lessen regulation on CO2 emissions has just as much as right to "petition the government" as does a lobbyist for the Sierra Club. The difference is that the Exxon/Mobil lobbyists has a $50,000 bundled campaign contribution behind his/her argument, while the Sierra Club lobbyists has a $500 campaign contribution behind his/her argument. In other words, in a election system that relies on politicians raising private money for their campaigns, the power and influence of a lobbyist's voice is largely connected to the moneyed interest they represent. There in lies the problem: private financing of campaigns, not lobbying.

-peace-