Brian Jones: “Mr. McNerney, thank you very much, and I want to thank you for taking the lead tonight to be on the floor. I know you…”

“Mr. McNerney, thank you very much, and I want to thank you for taking the lead tonight to be on the floor. I know you have other Members of Congress to join you in your hour, but I have been here for 20 years, and I must tell you that, since I have been here, I have never seen as much influence by the special interests as I do now, and that is because of money. Actually, both parties--and that is why you are a Democrat, I am a Republican--but both parties seem to succumb to the influence of money to get bills to the floor. I am a strong supporter of John Sarbanes, who is from Maryland. You have your bill that I have joined today, by the way, to sign my name to your resolution, and I am on John Sarbanes' bill, which is H.R. 20. The title is the Government By the People Act. I will touch on four quick points. One is building a government of, by, and for the people. The second part of the bill says empower the Americans to participate. The third part is amplify the voice of the people and then fight back against Big Money special interests. In my few minutes, Mr. McNerney, what I would like to talk about is the influence of money. I am a Republican and proud to be one; you are a Democrat and proud to be one, but I will tell you that I have seen so many bills this year get to the floor of the House because, in my opinion, it is because of the influence of special interests.…”