There's a bill from Maryland's John Sarbanes, and which already has 150 co-sponsors in the house, which tackles that very problem. From the website[0]:
The Government By the People Act has three specific policy prescriptions:
1. Empower everyday citizens and engage them in the political process by providing a $25 My Voice Tax Credit for campaign contributions.
2. Amplify these small-donor contributions, and give candidates the incentive to seek them out, with a six-to-one match from a Freedom From Influence Fund.
3. Allow candidates to earn additional public matching funds within 60 days of the election so that citizen-funded candidates can combat Super PACs and outside groups.
This is also one of those times when calling your Senator can work. The ones voting for it are kind of hoping that nobody notices. A lot of angry phone calls will convince them otherwise and could help give them cold feet.
It helps that there's not really a cohesive voting bloc in favor of the trade negotiations. It's just about the billionaires.
That's not going to help this time, because the TPP is fast-tracked and can't be filibustered, and has the overwhelming support of the Republican majority.
A comment on here might do little. Something a little noisier like a microsite or infographic linking each politician to payments from lobbyists might annoy them and get more attention?
- https://www.kickstarter.com
- Project title must inspire awe or anger - these valences are the most viral [1]
- Make a decision about the split of funds - e.g. $150k for EFF, $30k for politician/s X to vote for/against X
- Thank businesses and politicians who stand for your ideals - they might help spread the word or more
- Ask community for graphics - some will be highly viral by virtue of humor or capacity to incite anger
