There is an inherent tension between the notion of removing money from the process and freedom of speech.<p>There is another way to look at this problem though by asking why there is so much money being directed towards elections and politicians?  One cause is the increased size and scope of government.  When the role of government expands into more aspects of our lives via various regulations, subsidies, penalties, and so on it creates an incentive to influence the creation of those regulations, subsidies, and penalties.<p>A smaller role for government, in particular a reduction in policies that try to pick winners and losers explicitly (e.g. taxes or fees that favor particular companies or industries), could reduce the incentive to influence the creation of &quot;targeted&quot; legislation.<p>Another approach that doesn&#x27;t conflict with freedom of speech goals would be better transparency about the source of monies through more aggressive disclosure rules.