In order to restore public trust in our government, I urge Washington Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell to co-sponsor a bill that has been introduced time and again by Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo. The Close the Revolving Door Act aims to restrict revolving-door lobbying. It is neither democratic nor ethical for former members of Congress to attempt to influence current members on behalf of another person or group.
Two years ago, President Donald Trump issued a five-year “lobbying ban” to prevent officials from lobbying agencies they worked in after they leave. Arguably, the ban does not go far enough, but its symbolic meaning represents an attempt to regain public trust in the executive branch. Congress should do the same, and Sen. Bennet’s bill is a very good place to start.
Greater controls over who gets to lobby and greater transparency rules on lobbyists are necessary to realign the incentive structure of our government, and they signal to the people that government officials are serving their posts for the right reasons.
We must reform a system that continues to erode public trust.
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Jerry Chen, Seattle