Real reform

By Jim Thompson
HCP columnist

Now that the election is over, there are several issues that need the attention of the elected leaders in Washington, and, no, I do not mean "sequestration."

First, we need reform of the whole lobbying institution.

Lobbying is the biggest industry in Washington after the government itself. Lobbying has money and money can corrupt.

I would like to see advocates put the pressure on companies and institutions to scale back on lobbying as if it were pollution.

For it is pollution, pollution of the democratic system, with results that are often more devastating than that of air or water pollution.

Lobbying should be stopped or severely reduced on all sides. Not just business, but environmentalists, the NRA, Planned Parenthood, unions and on and on.

To my knowledge, no other republic on earth has the lobbying machine that exists in Washington. Why is that? Why can't we get rid of it?

Second, we need accountability in government departments.

The SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) requires publicly traded companies to file on a timely basis certain basic documents reporting on the health of their business.

Many major government departments are larger than major publicly traded businesses. These departments and their leaders should be held accountable to the same standards we hold businesses.

Don't file your forms on time? Get a fine which comes out of your budget and is put against the national debt.

Egregious violations? Management goes to jail.

Third, regulations need to be simplified and permit approval procedures need to be streamlined.

The protection of the environment, our heritage and many other regulated matters could be done much quicker.

Inane regulations, forms and procedures block real progress. Regulatory procedures should be administered by a non-partisan office where they can be examined on their merits for the common good, not by politicians.

The president of the United States should not have power over granting or denying permits for anything. He might appoint a permit board with Congress's approval of its members, but this process should be taken out of the politicians' direct control.

Fourth, we need to find a way to reward our politicians for improving the efficiency of government.

Not only is there no accountability among the bureaucrats, there is no reward or punishment meted out for efficiency performance.

There is no real business that could get by without this measurement.

Now, please note, I have not one time above said government should be shrunk.

That might be the case if these ideas were adopted, or it might be the case that the government could provide more or better services to the people. That is to be determined.

What is for certain is that our federal government has grown to be an inefficient behemoth controlled by people other than the electorate.

Sooner or later, we or going to fix this or it is going bring the country down.

Jim Thompson, formerly of Marshall, is a graduate of Hillsboro High School and the University of Cincinnati. He resides in Duluth, Ga., following decades of wandering the world, and is a columnist for The Highland County Press.