Lobbyists
Dealing with lobbying scandals while ignoring the scandal of unconstitutional
runaway government will solve nothing. If people truly believe that reform
is the solution, through regulating lobbyists and increasing congressional
reporting requirements, the real problem will be ignored and never identified.
This reform only makes things worse.
Ron Paul, “Searching for a New Direction,” U.S. House of
Representatives, Jan. 18, 2006.
Greater regulation of lobbyists is a dangerous and unnecessary proposition.
If one expects to solve a problem without correctly identifying its source,
the problem persists. The First Amendment clearly states: “Congress shall
make no laws respecting…the right of the people…to petition the government
for a redress of grievances.” That means NO law!
Ron Paul, “Searching for a New Direction,” U.S. House of
Representatives, Jan. 18, 2006.
The Abramoff scandal can serve a useful purpose if we put it in context
of the entire system that encourages corruption. If it’s seen as an isolated
case of individual corruption, and not an expected consequence of big
government run amuck, little good will come of it. If we understand how
our system of government intervenes in our personal lives, the entire
economy, and the internal affairs of nations around the world, we can
understand how it generates the conditions where lobbyists thrive. Only
then will some good come of it. Only then will we understand that undermining
the First Amendment right of the people to petition their government is
hardly a solution to this much more serious and pervasive problem.
Ron Paul, “Searching for a New Direction,” U.S. House of
Representatives, Jan. 18, 2006.