Why are members of Congress still allowed to trade stocks while voting on laws that can move entire markets?
Why can billionaires pour money into politics while ordinary Americans struggle to be heard?
Why do politicians get to choose their voters through partisan gerrymandering?
And what happens when corruption starts influencing decisions about our healthcare, housing, democracy and public lands?
For my first full interview with a sitting member of Congress, I sat down with Representative Greg Landsman of Ohio’s First District to talk about the Drain the Swamp Act and whether Washington can actually be cleaned up.
This was not meant to be another polished political interview where everyone repeats talking points and avoids the uncomfortable questions. I wanted to have the kind of conversation everyday Americans are having about a government that increasingly seems to work for the wealthiest and best connected people in the country.
We talked about banning members of Congress, presidents and Supreme Court justices from trading individual stocks. We talked about term limits, dark money, partisan gerrymandering, Supreme Court ethics and political prediction markets where people can gamble on government decisions they may already know are coming.
I also asked him directly about public lands.
When protections are stripped from places like Bears Ears, Grand Staircase-Escalante and the Boundary Waters, we have to ask who stands to profit and who has access to the people making those decisions. Our public lands belong to all of us. They should not be handed over as favors to wealthy donors, corporations or politically connected billionaires.
Near the end, I asked him one of the questions I hear most often from people who follow me: Does calling or emailing Congress actually matter?
His answer is worth hearing.
Whether you are a Democrat, Republican, independent or completely exhausted by all of them, I believe this conversation is worth your time.
Please watch the full interview on YouTube, leave a comment there and share it with someone who believes corruption in Washington has gone too far.