Open Secrets Needs Our Help

Everyone knows money in politics is a problem. If you want to strike up a conversation with someone about politics and want to avoid arguing about partisan opinions and policies, bring up “money in politics.” You will find that no matter the political leaning of your audience, they will agree that money is a corrupting force.

A slightly knowledgeable person might bring up the award-winning, nonpartisan, nonprofit website, Open Secrets.

Their stated vision for the project is to “create a more vibrant, representative and responsive democracy.” How?

With the amount of money ballooning to the largest amount ever, and outside money flooding electoral politics, it feels like it doesn’t matter how much reporting about the money there is. The money is bludgeoning the public with advertisements.

Open Secrets may want the availability of facts about where the money comes from to be armor against such advertising attacks, but it doesn’t seem to be working.

And, people who research and share the behind-the-scenes flood of funds to purchased politicians are viewed as tinfoil-hat-wearing goof balls; not armor-clad knights trying to save the damsel of democracy.

We are told to fight, but how? Vote? That’s our fight? That’s our winning strategy? It’s not enough.

Voting is feeling more and more like a way of placating the public. Corporations supply us with corrupt people to vote on, and then pretend we are responsible for voting them into office. “You can’t complain. You had a choice.” Right. Some choice.

Open Source may provide high-quality data and reporting, but it isn’t enough. It needs a vehicle to deliver this information to the public. Even if everyone knows and agrees that money in politics is a problem, they probably don’t know the stats. They are alarming.

Finally, information alone isn’t enough. We need a plan. There must be action.