Proposal For A New Check in the Old Checks and Balances

Politicians need to be held responsible for when the passage of a law has negative results. We cannot trust voters to vote the bums out -- it's never My Congressman who is the problem, but the Other Congressmen who are the problem (much like, it's not My School that is not giving children a proper education, it is all the Other Schools that are the problem -- no, it is absolutely YOUR SCHOOL!!! that is the problem, and until we admit that, there will never be true education reform in this country). Further, just because someone passed one law with negative consequences, that doesn't mean that other laws one's politicians passed didn't have positive consequences. Thus, I propose that individual lawmakers be held legally liable for the laws they pass, and the proven negative consequences produced. Thus, if a law is passed that results in an increase in the crime rate, and it can be proven in a court of law, each lawmaker who voted for it will have to pay a fine that makes up for the cost of the law they passed. I would venture to say that having the ability to hold lawmakers responsible this way would make them think twice about passing any law -- unless they had a fair amount of certainty it would have the desired effect(s). Thus, there would be no more of this nonsense about the lawmakers having "good intentions," no matter what the outcome may be. Lawmakers should be interested in good outcome, not good intentions. There is a very subtle form of immorality in supporting good intentions that have bad outcomes (remember what the road to Hell is paved with). I say it is about time our lawmakers were held responsible for their actions -- and not just with the voters, but in courts of law. Of course, I don't expect any lawmaker to ever support anything like this -- that is perhaps what revolutions are for.