Banning paid political advertising is a first step. It's insane to market politicians the way one would market toilet paper or hemorrhoid ointment. (The choice of products is not accidental.) Let the candidates get free air time to debate. I don't mean debate in the current format, which is nothing more than a joint press conference anchored around pre-rehearsed sound bytes. I mean genuine cross questioning and rebuttal, akin to what Lincoln and Douglas did in 1858. And let's keep the moderators on a short leash.
For presidential debates, I would do what PBS did in 1980, which so frightened the two parties that they did not permit it again.
In 1980, PBS held debates in which the advisors and future staffs of the three candidates debated in a true debate format rather than have the candidates themselves posture with sound bytes. Each team had a captain who would decide which team member would speak or rebut. For the domestic policy debate, Art Laffer was captain of Reagan's team, and one of my treasured memories is Laffer eviscerating Mitch Rogovin of Anderson's team on economic policy. In the foreign policy debate, Al Haig was captain of Reagan's team, and I remember how he sent Paul Nitze in to crush Paul Warnke of Carter's team on Soviet policy.
We need to break up the six companies that control every network, cable channel, newspaper, book publisher, magazine and movie studio in this country. Until their megaphones are removed, it will be difficult to inform the citizenry.
We need an electorate that is outraged, politically active and properly informed about what is really going on behind the curtain. Until we do, a new party, however created, will only permit the Democratic and Republican parties to double-team the people.
I would call it the Constitution Party and invite anyone who truly believes in the Constitution and our founding fathers. Simple platform, God and Country.