I signed Public Campaign’s petition to stem regulatory concessions to industry lobbyists with the following submission:

Sunday’s New York Times article, “Business Lobby Presses Agenda Before ’08 Vote“, highlighting the increased pre-Presidential election lobbying activity already underway, prompts me to petition you as a Congressional leader to heighten your vigilance in protecting the public good from the narrow interests of moneyed lobbyists. It’s critical to maintain sensible regulations that defend the shared commons of the environment, ensure consumer safety, and strengthen our working families, not only for the role such regulations play in protecting the public good, but also to demonstrate the integrity of our democracy against the corrosive influence of special interest lobbyists and the political access the campaign contributions from those they represent may have purchased. I urge you to prevent any regulatory roll-overs to industry lobbyists that run counter the public interest and to work for Clean Elections public campaign financing that will strip the undue control these moneyed interests have over government policy.