I’ve been following the political debate surrounding lobbying reform and I have an idea that would probably be the most effective way to prevent lobbyist corruption as well as prevent special interests from wielding too much influence over Congress: Make it illegal for non-citizens to donate to political campaigns.

Put a yearly cap on citizen contributions at $5,000 to prevent wealthy individuals from wielding too much power.

Under such restrictions, Congressmen and Senators would be forced to raise money by seeking it from the people themselves. Rich companies and organizations should not be able to sway the vote of a Senator by dangling a carrot of campaign contributions.

Henry David Thoreau once said, “For every ten people who are clipping at the branches of evil, you’re lucky to find one who’s hacking at the roots.” There is real evil in Congress right now and at it’s root you’ll find campaign contributions from special interests. We need to end it before the next Abramoff comes along.

A concerned citizen