How can we fight corruption in politics?

The first thing to do to fight corruption in politics is to institute term limits. It helps reduce the number of carreer politicians. Another way is to indeed abolish the 17th amendment and give power back to the states where it was originally intended.

Too often, you see legislators giving goodies out for votes. Since those goodies are paid you by you and me, it becomes a viscious, endless cycle. Groups petition legislators for favors. Those groups then donate money to said legislator and both then benefit at our expense... Unions are the worst about this... Especially public sector unions. Are we to believe that unions are considered people, while corporations are not? While I have no love of big corporations, I do think they can act as a counterbalance to those who I have to subsidize...

Representatives are best chosen by the people at the voting booth, as history has told us. The main issue I see is the rise of influences other than voting and their effects on elections. I'm talking mainly about money in campaign financing. There are some very strong arguments made by certain individuals that claim that the spending of money is one of our essential freedoms we have as Americans. This is certainly true but every freedom has limits on its worldly effects. We have the right to own guns, but not to use them whenever we see fit.

The main point of contention on campaign finance laws is centered around that limit where people are no longer allowed to spend their own money and it is not an easy question. Most Americans will tell you that the US government was created to, first and foremost, protect the rights of the citizens of this country and that every citizen is(now) equal under the law. If that is the case then the prime tool that we as equals use, which is voting, must be kept on equal grounds if the government is to remain efficient at its initial purpose. We ban poll taxes and any other form of voting discrimination. Wealth from individuals and corporations only throws off balance the necessary equality we all enjoy in the US, in terms of voting.