P3′s bestseller is The Blue Pages, which (among other things) shows readers how much money corporations contribute to the two major political parties. The idea is simple; money talks, so let’s listen, draw our own judgments about who’s benefiting, and patronize companies that share our values.

But now the U.S. Supreme Court has decided to lift restrictions on corporate giving to politicians. That effectively sets up an open auction for Congress and the White House. It also recalls the old Bob Dylan line: money doesn’t talk, it swears.

What to do? P3 author Dean Baker has an idea. In exchange for granting limited liability to corporations, Congress should impose restrictions on them similar to those for tax-exempt organizations. Dean outlined his idea in this piece on Huffington Post.

I love the simplicity of that idea. The question is, will Congress and the White House push back on their patrons/paymasters?