Ten Years And Counting

Andrew Ferguson notes that "Lobbying Reform" in the wake of Abramoff is missing the point.

Read the whole piece - which ends:

Lobbying thrives on government -- specifically the government's willingness to meddle in every sector of national life, multiplying the number of aggrieved citizens who either want to protect themselves or to benefit from the meddling

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It's not a coincidence that while the lobbying community roughly doubled in size, the federal government's budget grew by nearly two-thirds. Big government raises big stakes.

It's possible that smaller government would have the opposite effect. Nobody will know until it's tried. The 1995 lobbying reform was passed by a Republican majority loudly and ostentatiously committed to shrinking government's scope and power.

Do you suppose the failure of lobbying reform is a consequence -- unintended, naturally -- of the failure to make good on that much more far-reaching commitment?

That, and elected legislators' desire to have a really cushy job after they get done with their time in public service.

Posted by Mitch at January 18, 2006 06:58 AM | TrackBack