No, the oath does not mention campaign contributions, though I wish it did. The underlined last sentence, however, indicates that among the major duties of the office is to represent the wishes and interests of those that elected the oath taker. And that is exactly what is not happening when any senator takes campaign contributions from the very corporations that are being targeted for reform. The conflict of interest could not be clearer.
But what to do? Among the many rules and regulations of the Senate include censure (sometimes referred to as condemnation or denouncement) that does not remove a senator from office. It is a formal statement of disapproval, however, that can have a powerful psychological effect on a member and his/her relationships in the Senate. Further, in the Standing Rules of the Senate, under ethics, there is a conflict of interest provision that prohibits many situation involving members accepting various forms of compensation that would conflict with the senators' duties of office. Again, none of this reference specifically includes compensation from campaign contributions.
The makeup of the Senate, as previously stated, is such that it does not truly represent democracy in America. We know that the GOP and a special group of Democratic Senators from this nation's least populous states, mainly in the South and the West, have strong connections with the largest health care providers, and are shamelessly taking campaign contributions from those corporations while they are a part of the legislation process. We also know that their actions are a direct conflict of interest and that they are blatantly siding with those who feed them money, while the interests of the American people have no impact on their decision-making.
This is a sad state of affairs for our nation. From my research it appears that there is no action that can be taken with these rogue Senators to force them to uphold their oath of office and the U.S. Constitution. They should be censured but they apparently will not. That has not been done for many years. There should be some way to guarantee that corporate interests cannot be allowed to trump those of the American people, but it is becoming clear that this will simply not happen in this Congress.
One action that the Senate can readily take that will be in accordance with Senate Rules: Majority Leader Harry Reid should immediately remove Senator Max Baucus, D-Mon., the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee from his position of authority. This senator, one of the largest recipients of health care industry campaign contributions has clearly proven that his allegiance is to health care corporations and not to the American people. He has used numerous tactics and continuous stalling to find a way to kill the public option. He has shown his true colors that indicate a clear conflict of interest and, for that, he should be replaced by someone who will promote the interests of America. The stench emanating from the actions of Baucus and the other members of that "gang of six has become unbearable to the people of America.
And what does all of scenario this tell us about the sad state of the United States legislative process? It very clearly tells us that the U.S. Senate has now evolved into a legislative body that no longer represents the American people and, therefore, has become totally irrelevant to our system of democracy.
Michael Payne
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