Americans are losing faith in our democracy – and with good reason. While our families struggle to get ahead, politicians in Washington line their own pockets and special interests and wealthy donors flood our political system with money to protect their own power and access. Donald Trump and his family are exploiting an already-broken system to the point of absurdity, cashing in on the presidency, pressuring businesses into sweetheart deals, and selling access to the highest bidder.

But it isn’t just Trump — too many members of Congress are trading stocks, collecting dividends and campaign checks from corporations they’re supposed to be regulating, and profiting from corporate lobbying work after leaving office.

Our broken campaign finance system rewards wealthy donors, drowns out our voices, and lets big corporations and their lobbyists write the rules. And when politicians are allowed to profit from inside information and make decisions that benefit their personal portfolios, we’re all left to deal with the consequences.

The influence of big money in politics is at the heart of almost every problem our country faces. It’s why Congress refuses to take on Big Pharma, break up corporate monopolies, or act faster on climate change. We need campaigns powered by the people – not billionaires and corporate special interests.

Restoring trust in government starts with making sure elected officials work for the people — not for donors, lobbyists, or their own investment interests.

I’ll fight for reforms to clean up our politics and make our government truly accountable to the people, including:

• Ban Stock Trading by Members of Congress: I don’t own any individual stocks, and I pledge never to trade stocks while in Congress. We should end the practice of lawmakers profiting off non-public information and financial conflicts of interest. Members should serve the public — not their own portfolios.

• Passing the Government by the People Act: Create a small-donor matching system that lifts up grassroots contributors and reduces the power of big money in congressional elections. I led the successful effort to get this done in Evanston. We can and should do it nationwide.

• Stop Gerrymandering: Voters should choose their elected officials — elected officials shouldn’t get to choose their voters. I’ll champion federal legislation to ban partisan gerrymandering, and to ensure districts are compact, contiguous, and protect communities of interest. The recent Trump power grab to protect their Republicans’ House majority with mid-decade gerrymandering in deep red states is an undemocratic disgrace. While I fully support Democratic-controlled states’ moves to fight back rather than unilaterally disarm, we need a national ban on mid-decade redistricting.

• Ending Racist Voter Suppression and Restore the Voting Rights Act: We must fully restore the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and renew the federal government’s authority to review new voting laws in states with histories of racist voter suppression. 

• Overturning Citizens United to Ban Unlimited Corporate Cash in Campaigns: The Citizens United decision is a blight that is killing our democracy. Corporations are not people. We need to amend the Constitution to get corporate money out of politics once and for all.

• Abolishing the Electoral College: The Electoral College is an 18th century relic that disenfranchises millions of Americans. It’s time to move to a national popular vote.

• Ending the Revolving Door: We should ban members of Congress and senior staff from becoming lobbyists immediately after leaving office.

• Strengthening Conflict of Interest Laws for the President and Vice President: Presidents and Vice Presidents should have to place their business and personal assets into a truly blind trust to ensure they cannot profit from their office. 

• Codifying a Code of Ethics for Federal Courts, Including the Supreme Court: The Supreme Court must have a code of conduct, disclosure requirements, and a complaint procedure. An independent authority should be empowered to investigate public complaints and other potential violations. We also need a binding recusal process for federal judges so they can’t rule on issues where they have a conflict of interest, and we should ban federal judges from owning individual stocks.

• 18-Year Term Limits for Supreme Court Justices: No comparable democracy in the world allows lifetime terms for top judges besides the United States. An 18-year term limit would reduce the partisanship of the court and promote healthy turnover.
  

I’m not taking a dime of corporate PAC money, because the only people I’ll answer to are the people of the 9th District. I believe in a democracy where every voice matters equally, not just the ones with the biggest checkbooks.