All of this was fixable. The sum total of reforms (a bit simplified, to be fair) is this:

  1. Limit campaign donations:
  • A citizen may only donate to a person for whom (s)he may vote in the next election.
  • The sum total of donations must be a very small amount, allowing access to any person.

2. Limit access to lawmakers:

  • Every meeting with every individual who is not a constituent must be logged and recorded as a permanent record.
  • Every meeting with a constituent must be logged, but not necessarily recorded.

3. A holder of national office must divest his or her holdings:

  • An exception to this is dwelling real estate or small (very small) business.
  • Real property of little financial value may be retained.
  • Value of previously held stocks, bonds, etc. would be directed to an anonymous and wide-ranging fund directly proportional to the standard holdings within the US citizenry.
  • A non-partisan legal and fiduciary committee would review all transactions of the national officials with veto authority.