Organizations seeking reforms to our Democracy must speak with a unified voice.
My e-travels have led me to hundreds of other organizations and individuals who are promoting reforms in the American political system. Though they come at it from different angles and recommend an array of solutions, all would certainly improve our democratic experience. The other thing we all have in common is failure. Even those asking for common sense reforms have little to show for all their zeal. A good example is campaign finance reform, an issue first noted in 1757. We’re still waiting.
Besides Congress not wishing to chop down their member’s money tree, the other reason we reformers fail is that we speak with many tongues. Our hundreds of tiny voices are no match for those who daily scream for special attention. Only a focused and unified voice can hope to prevail.
SOLUTION: All the reforms we desperately need could be enacted if the Citizenry were empowered to do so. We reformers must focus on giving them that authority -- nothing else and nothing less. That authority would come in the form of an amendment that makes the Citizenry the fourth and highest branch of government, with prime responsibility for defining national policy. Consider the draft below.
The Democracy Amendment
Section 1. The Constitution of the United States of America is hereby amended to re-affirm that the Citizens of this nation are, and of right ought to be, the supreme authority in their governance. All Legislative, Executive and Judicial powers granted herein shall henceforth be subordinate to the Will of the People.
Section 2. The Will of the People shall be expressed in National Policy Decisions. At three-month intervals, a group of seven willing citizens shall be randomly selected to serve on the Caucus. The task of the Caucus shall be to identify to the nation those unresolved issues of great current or future import and to present those issues for deliberation as part of a national policy referendum. The period of deliberation shall be three months and will conclude with a vote. A National Policy Decision (NPD) shall be deemed to have been made when three-fifths of participating voters affirm the policy or one of the policy options presented.
Section 3. A National Policy Decision directs all subsequent actions by the other branches of government. Within six months of the NPD, the Legislature shall enact laws that faithfully express the Will of the People. The Executive shall then administer those laws efficiently and The Judiciary shall rule where there is disagreement as to whether a law, or its administration, faithfully expresses the Will of the People.
As the vanguard of change, our goal is not to achieve reforms of our design,
but to provide, to the People, the tool they need to craft reforms of their own choosing!
20 February 2021