Keeping Politicians Honest

Reforming Politics


Politicians and special interests are always seeking new ways around popular reforms.

Campaign laws are only as good as the people who enforce them, so we give those authorities an extra push.

Local politicians wield power and are tempted too, so Consumer Watchdog and our grassroots volunteers drafted, gathered signatures and won campaigns for the nation's toughest conflict-of-interest initiatives in cities across California.

Ever heard of politicians who show up for work, but won’t vote because they're afraid to offend the special interests funding their campaigns? We exposed the California lawmakers with the worst "not-voting" records.

We investigate the trends in political corruption, work to make sure campaign laws are enforced and spearhead efforts to get the money out of politics.

Recent Articles:

Candidates Find Incumbent Advantage Extends To Web

By Sara Jerome, THE NATIONAL JOURNAL
March 4, 2010

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Senate Panel Mulls Consumer Protection Deal

By Jennifer Liberto, CNNMONEY.COM
March 2, 2010

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FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair Committed To Independent Consumer Agency

By Shahien Nasiripour, THE HUFFINGTON POST
March 2, 2010

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California Assembly Speaker-Elect Pérez Has Ties To Deep Pockets

By Patrick McGreevy and Jack Dolan, THE LOS ANGELES TIMES
February 28, 2010

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Recent Posts in Keeping Politicians Honest:

Insurance rate curbs continue to gain steam

The latest round of exhorbitant rate increases nationally has helped more and more people recognize what Consumer Watchdog has been arguing for the last year: Congress cannot require all Americans to purchase insurance from the for-profit insurance industry without real oversight of what they charge ...

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Health insurance premium curbs are catching on

Consumer Watchdog's calls for tough and open health insurance rate regulation are being echoed and amplified. The latest instance is in Connecticut, the home state of insurance companies, where Attorney General Earl Blumenthal recently proposed major reforms that would require the state to review and reject, modify or allow a rate change before it goes into effect. No more shrugging and letting it happen without a public review.

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Put corporate political spending to a vote

When the US Supreme Court decided to allow corporations to spend money directly on campaign advertising, they opened the floodgates to excessive spending by companies to change the outcome of elections. The long-term solution is a...

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Sarah Palin wasn't the only Alaskan border-hopping for health care

Sarah Palin, the Cruella DeVille of anti-government-health care, caught everyone's attention with the story of her family hopping the border from Skagway, Alaska, into the Yukon Territory for Canadian government health care when Palin was a child. Canadian newspapers noted cattily that Palin previously described going to Juneau, Alaska, for the same treatment for her brother's burned foot. Whatever. I wanted to know whether other Alaskans went to Canada for medical care--and still do.

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The no. 1 cure for Anthem Blue Cross greed: Here's the plan, from the expert

Harvey Rosenfield, the founder of Consumer Watchdog and the author of California's landmark insurance regulation, is the original expert on making insurance companies friendlier to consumers. So when he outlines a plan to make health insurance more affordable--and combat price spikes like the recent 39% annual increase by Anthem Blue Cross--he's got 20 years in the trenches making insurance companies toe the line, to back him up.

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