One of the ways that special interests dominate California politics is through a system of secret surveys and questionnaires through which candidates make hidden commitments behind closed doors.
The way it works is simple: special interests ask candidates to commit, in advance of any endorsement or financial support, to very specific legislative agendas. These commitments are usually kept hidden from the public, but are used to leverage secret promises from future officeholders.
To help end this practice, I have committed to the “Transparency Pledge” – and I have challenged my competitors for the Senate seat to do the same. The pledge:
- To post, on my campaign website, all questions and answers to each questionnaire I submit
- To post, on my campaign website, any written statement or letter to any organization that provides commitments to broad or specific policy objectives
The focus of our campaign should be on solutions to the big problems facing our state. The voters deserve a thoughtful and fair-minded representative in Sacramento, and they should not be left wondering what sort of promises any of us made to secure that position.
- The full text of the letter to my competitors can be found here.
- The campaign questionnaires I have received can be found here.
- My issue statements are here.