Idea: For each congressional district, and for each senate seat, start a warchest now, asking for grass roots donations, starting NOW, followed by an incessant (but subtle and non-obnoxious) drumbeat for donations until election time.
Whoever wins the primary gets the warchest. If the warchest is enough, campaign as "I am not accepting any special interest donations".
Good idea or not ?
If successful, this would move us towards achieving campaign finance reform from the bottom up. The institutions for starting this off would logically be the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, who would do this for each district and state. If you have any juice with these guys, please forward this idea to them, if you think it has merit.
================================================================
ADDED 10:50am EST 5/19/17
Please, do not forget.... political campaign donations by deep pocketed special interest groups have exerted a corrosive influence that is enormously detrimental to the interests of the great majority of us, and that favors the 1 per cent. Progressive ideas such as single payer health care have been defeated because special interests opposed it. Numerous environmental protections are now being removed because special interests want them removed.
Please do not forget, also, that both Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump ran campaigns that stressed they were not taking donations from special interest groups, and that this probably greatly helped both candidates.
Of course, there are special interests hugely opposed to campaign finance reform, because it would take their power away. I think it should be a key goal of progressives to obliterate their influence.
Another point: Tell the potential donor that the money will go direct to the campaign fund of the candidate selected in the primary — in the district they have decided to support -— normally their home district. Make clear there will be no diversion to other pockets. I think a lot of people are a bit cynical about “donating to the party” because they do not know where the money is going to go.
================================================================
P.S. Oh, and be super careful asking for more donations from those who have already given. It can get really annoying unless done with restraint, subtlety and charm.
P.P.S. By the way, set an upper limit like maybe $20 or $50 for contributions ?