Over the course of American history, the US congress has taken many shapes and forms. It started out as a body of men who were wealthy landowners that made laws. Today it has expanded to include women and all sorts of ethnic diversities. But there is still one thing that gets in the way of getting our representatives and senators to do their jobs. Public corruption. Today it comes in the form of money and accepting bribes. One of the biggest forms of bribery comes from the lobbying industry. Although in many ways lobbying is legal there are many ways in which it could be taken as illegal and loopholes that could be looked at as bribery.

Cases of lobbyists influencing congress men and women come out over the news all the time. There are reports that the lobbying companies have paid the politicians under the table in expensive meals, luxury vacations, and large campaign donations in return for helping move along laws that will help the product of the company. Law makers do not report this to the press for fear of losing their reputations with their constituents. The companies don’t file this into their reports because they do not want to caught doing something illegal and get charged with major fines and lawsuits.

This issue has fallen to the people and independent “watchdog” companies to track the files and cases in the meeting of lawmakers and lobbyists. If Capitol Hill cannot own up to the fact that they accept gifts from lobbyists and the companies they represent then it must be illegal.

The reason lobbying is immoral is not because of what it promotes, although it does promote things in the tobacco industry, gun production, and even the drug industry. It’s immoral because it makes the U.S. government overlook shortcomings in these industries that could be potentially harmful to the public. Many reforms that would make tobacco safer for the public were turned down because the politicians in charge of the committee were being bribed by the company’s lobbyists.

The United States government is still using lobbyists to make money and even start insider trading that is illegal for the public. Now the congress has accounts personal campaign accounts that can be used for virtually anything and it is legal. These loopholes made by lobbying reforms make it seem like the government is trying to solve its public corruption problem without hurting their fiscal gain.

Lobbyist Richard Berman, or “Dr. Evil”, is one of the most well know lobbyists. His goals are to bring down groups like Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) and Center for Disease Control and Prevention. His profit and earnings come from the companies that these organizations try to quash. He was allowed to give the government officials anything they really wanted, like those expensive dinners and luxury vacations. That was his purpose until he was caught for breaking the law in giving all these gifts to politicians and sent to jail for a few years.

Lobbying is not all bad though. Many companies use lobbyists to make reforms for public education and recreational activities that make our lives better. It is a way to let our representatives in the government know what is on the public’s mind. Some, like lobbyist Richard Berman, want to loosen the control that “do-gooders” have over the American people. Unfortunately with lobbyists, it is more about who has money and who can make you richer. In that case most of the lobbyists with the opportunity to bribe congressmen are in the big companies selling harmful products. It makes those who would give good information to people lose power to people who only want money.

This form of bribery cannot be tolerated. If the public or private business wants to continue lobbying, Congress should write tighter reforms and allow for independent companies to make sure that every meeting is just and legal. This means no loopholes for the big industries to escape through. Is it fair that the company with all the money wins while the people who are doing things that will help the general populace aren’t being listened to? The people must be heard in a way that is legal.