Problem:
Washington is a mess.

Solution:
Crack down on perks and the abuse of power.

Following are some of the key changes that would help make Washington work for us.

• Provide public funding for all federal elections - barring candidates who took private donations, even from themselves or their families, from receiving one dime of public money.
• Congress must be covered by every law it passes, and its members should receive the same kind of treatment (health care, pension benefits, parking, travel) available to the average American.
• Limit congressional pensions so that they are on a par with private pensions. Former vice president Dan Quayle, who is heir to a multimillion-dollar family newspaper fortune, is expected to collect $1.8 million in retirement benefits in his lifetime, starting at age 60.
• Create a presidentially appointed Commission on Perks that would eliminate all special favors to Congress and the White House.
• Prohibit members of Congress and their staff from accepting any donations, however small, from registered lobbyists.