Legislation
The CLEAN Act
The CLEAN Act will hold members of Congress to the highest ethical standards.
Ethics & Accountability
Public officials should act in all of our interest, not to line their own pockets. Common Cause is fighting to ensure that all of our leaders are held to high ethical standards.
From city councils to the U.S. Congress and the Supreme Court, the people making decisions that affect our lives and our families need to be held to the highest ethical standards. Common Cause works to ensure that those empowered to act on everyone’s behalf disclose their personal finances, uphold the rule of law, and cannot turn their public service into a personal profit scheme.
What We’re Doing
Legislation
Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act
Government agencies abuse Section 702 by conducting hundreds of thousands of“backdoor” searches for Americans’ private communications every year. Congress must pass real reform with protections for Americans against government abuse.
Campaign
Supreme Court Ethics
Supreme Court Justices make decisions that impact millions of people every year—but they are not held to the same ethical standards as other federal judges.
Take Action
Letter To The Editor
Write Your Letter: Stop Anti-Democracy Project 2025
Project 2025 is a 1,000-page agenda handcrafted by the Heritage Foundation for a Trump presidency – and we have every reason to believe Trump will try to follow through on it.
Petition
Add Your Name: No One Is Above the Law
No one is above the law, including Donald Trump.
But the Supreme Court’s dangerous presidential immunity ruling puts that principle at risk and goes against accountability, the rule of law, and our Constitution.
Congress must pass a constitutional amendment to permanently declare that no American is above the law – not even former presidents – and prohibit presidents from pardoning themselves.
Petition
Tell Congress: Wealthy donors shouldn’t control our Supreme Court
The Judicial Conference’s weakened disclosure rules are unacceptable and will make it easier for wealthy donors to secretly buy influence over the Supreme Court – at the expense of everyday Americans.
Congress must put a stop to this now by passing the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal, and Transparency Act and creating the strongest possible Code of Conduct for our highest court.
Your financial support helps us make an impact by holding power accountable and strengthening democracy.
Updates
Article
Stop Matt Gaetz
Rep. Matt Gaetz is an election denier and far-right ideologue who belongs nowhere near the Department of Justice.
Article
5 Ways Common Cause Defended Democracy in the First Trump Administration
Here’s just a few examples of how members like you made a positive impact during the first Trump Administration.
Article
What is Project 2025?
Understanding this new threat to our rights. Project 2025 is a dangerous policy playbook being pushed by conservative extremists. It could threaten basic freedoms by gutting checks and balances and consolidating power in the office of the president, like other authoritarian governments.
Related Resources
Letter
LETTERS: Justice Thomas’ Alleged Conflicts of Interest
Report
Highlights and Accomplishments From 2022
Report
Highlights and Accomplishments From 2021
Report
Ten Principles for Reforming the Rules of the House of Representatives
The following recommendations to reform the rules of the House of Representatives will do much to restore the capacity, incentives, and capability of representatives to fulfill their roles as legislators.
Press
Press Release
Trump Must Sign Ethics Pledge & Transition Documents
President-elect Donald Trump still has not signed legal documents – including an ethics pledge - needed to formally begin his administration’s transition of power. Candidates usually file these documents well in advance of the election. As a result of this delay, the government cannot provide security clearances, briefings and resources to Trump’s incoming team before he is sworn into office on January 20th.
Press Release
Government Accountability Groups Urge House to Strengthen the Office of Congressional Ethics and Make It Permanent
Today, Common Cause and other government accountability groups urged every member of the U.S. House of Representatives to strengthen the independent Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) and make the office permanent. Even if Congress does not codify the OCE into law at this time, the groups stress the importance of maintaining the office’s continued existence and the importance of not weakening it in the 119th Congress. The letter emphasizes overwhelming public support for increased ethics and accountability measures and touts the success of...
Gaetz Ethics Committee Report Should Still be Released in Wake of Nomination Withdrawal
This afternoon, ex-Rep. Matt Gaetz withdrew his nomination to serve as U.S. Attorney General in the administration of President-elect Donald J. Trump. Common Cause had opposed Gaetz’s nomination and urged the House Ethics Committee to release the report on its investigation of numerous allegations of criminal activity by the former Member who resigned days before the Committee was expected to release its report. Common Cause continues to call for the release of the report in the wake of the withdrawal of Gaetz’s nomination.
