People have stopped believing that government can work for them. For decades, politicians have made promises they didn't keep, spent money they couldn't account for, and answered to donors instead of voters. Now an entire generation has grown up never seeing what a functioning democracy can actually produce. Both parties share responsibility. Republicans say government is the problem, then govern so badly they prove themselves right. Too many Democrats defend government without demanding that it actually perform. Neither approach earns trust.
Transparency, Efficiency, and Affordability are the standard we should hold our government to. Government should be easy to see, easy to evaluate, and focused on making life better for the people it serves. When all three are present, trust follows. When any one is missing, trust erodes. These three values are the foundation of everything we are building.
Transparency
Democracy requires that citizens can see what their government is doing. Not after the fact. Not through a FOIA request. In real time. How representatives vote, what they're working on, where the money goes, and whether the things they promised actually got done. When people can see the work, they can hold their representatives accountable. When they can't, they stop believing the work is happening at all.
Efficiency
Government should deliver on what it promises. When it doesn't, people lose faith not just in the politicians who failed, but in the idea that government can do anything at all. That cynicism is the real threat to democracy. Regulations that cost more than they solve should be fixed. Programs that aren't producing results should be reformed. Promises that were made should be kept. Demanding that government work well is not a conservative position. It is a democratic one.
Affordability
When government works for special interests instead of working for people, life gets more expensive. Healthcare costs more because the system is designed for profit. Housing costs more because zoning laws protect property values over people. Running for office costs more because campaigns depend on wealthy donors. Democracy only works when regular people can afford to live a good life and participate in shaping the one they want.
My Plan
- Require members of Congress to hold regular, publicly accessible town halls
- Ban members of Congress from trading individual stocks while in office
- Create public dashboards tracking whether promised projects and legislation are actually delivered
- Publish plain-language summaries of every bill before a vote, so voters can see what their representatives are actually voting on
- Support a constitutional amendment to allow public financing of elections, so candidates answer to voters instead of donors
- Support a constitutional amendment to abolish the presidential pardon power
- Review regulations that have become too expensive to comply with or are driving up costs without producing results
Ready to build a government people can see, understand, and trust?
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