Newsletter - September 2024

We all know when we've had a good experience, bought a good product, or received outstanding service.

Unfortunately, this type of "good quality" happens much too infrequently, and it is seldom something that is associated with government. Nonetheless, I don't believe it is unreasonable to hold our government to the highest standards of quality.

The last of my good government principles is commitment to excellence. To a large extent, my seven other principles are a prerequisite to a "commitment to excellence" by Congress and by our government. However, there is also a standalone component to this principle that ties to how well Congress and our government perform their jobs.

Organizations that demonstrate a commitment to excellence consistently meet or exceed their customers' expectations by delivering high quality goods and services.

Throughout my career, I have been very fortunate to witness and support successful "Quality journeys" in a wide variety of industries and functional areas. "Quality journey" refers to the use of Continuous Improvement tools and techniques to achieve desired results. I firmly believe such a journey is possible for Congress and throughout our government.

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As we get close to our November election, I feel it is appropriate to pause my newsletter until after the election.

I will likely publish one more newsletter this year. In that newsletter, I will provide an update on discussions I have had with a number of organizations and individuals on moving "government effectiveness" from a background or secondary topic to a top-of-mind goal for voters and our elected officials.

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My social media posts this month focused on the upcoming election. I shared tools to help voters to sort through the information and misinformation we are being inundated with along with information on the heroic efforts of election officials to ensure we have a free and fair election.

• Poynter's "Find Facts Fast" media literacy course

• Info from Temple University on how to identify and avoid false information

• Issue One - Faces of Democracy

• Two short films that depict the work of election officials

  • The Officials

  • No Time to Fail

Please be sure to exercise your right to vote!

Newsletter - August 2024

Money in politics creates conflicts of interest for every candidate and office holder.

Thanks to Open Secrets, there is readily available data on the alarming amount of money spent on elections. Close to ten billion dollars will be spent on Congressional campaigns this election cycle. That's approximately $20 million per candidate. Members of the House of Representatives, who are subject to election cycles every two years, have to raise $30,000 every day to accumulate this amount of money!

There are a wide variety of organizations that contribute to election campaigns. Many of these organizations provide advice and/or counsel to candidates on pending legislation and most are advocating for specific causes.

It is unrealistic to expect our elected officials to be knowledgeable on all of the problems they are trying to solve. For that reason, it is critical that they get information from subject matter experts to support their legislative efforts. It is perfectly reasonable for subject matter experts to lobby politicians to incorporate their perspective in resulting legislation. Conflicts of interest occur when our elected officials accept money from the very people or entities that are providing them with expert advice.

Nothing would improve the effectiveness of our government more than eliminating this link between money and politics!

Voice of the People and the University of Maryland Program for Public Consultation found that large bipartisan majorities favor a constitutional amendment to allow governments greater freedom to regulate campaign financing (thus overturning the Citizens United decision). Large bipartisan majorities also favor numerous requirements for increasing disclosure of campaign financing. Here's a link that provides more details on these findings and another link to an interactive survey that allows you to evaluate a number of proposals for improving campaign financing.

Most large companies have very strict conflict-of-interest rules. These rules severely restrict gifts or favors that employees can accept, they require all employees to attend conflict of interest and ethics training on an annual basis, and they require them to promptly disclose any actual or potential conflicts of interest. It seems only fair for our elected officials to be bound by similar standards.

Social media posts this month:

• A broad overview of campaign finance spending

• How much money has been spent on elections over the last thirty years

• Biggest organizational donors to federal elections

• House and Senate ethics rules

Have a great month!

Newsletter - July 2024

It has truly been an eventful month - from President Biden ending his reelection campaign, to the assassination attempt on former president Trump, and the recent Supreme Court decisions.

Trust in our elected leaders and in government institutions remains at an all-time low, and our democracy appears to be in a state of transition.

Regardless of the direction of our country, partnership between our elected officials and their constituents is critical to restoring trust, and critical to an effective and representative government.

The sixth of my eight good government principles is partnership with the public. Simply put, I am advocating for our elected officials to actively solicit input from their constituents and act on that input.

Voice of the People (VOP) is doing an outstanding job of promoting "partnership with the public", leveraging public consultation to identify bipartisan common ground on difficult problems facing our country.

Through Voice of the People Action, VOP is asking all congressional candidates, including current members of the House and Senate, to take their "Listen to the People pledge", which would compel candidates and elected officials to:

• Take into account the views of their constituents when voting on legislation

• Pay close attention to public consultation surveys and forums conducted with representative samples of their constituents

• Actively work to let their constituents know that they will listen to all the people they represent

Regardless of the results of this November's election and the specific direction of our country, there remains a huge opportunity to improve the effectiveness of Congress and our government. I am continuing discussions with a number of individuals and organizations to explore ways to tie many disparate and amazing efforts into a more cohesive approach to bring government effectiveness and accountability to the forefront of our Democracy.

This month's social media posts:

• Information about the ASQ Gov Connect webinar that provided an in depth look at the work of the Center for Electoral Quality and Integrity

• Brief comments on the assassination attempt on former President Trump

• Insightful article about trust in government and civic engagement

Have a great month.