Entrepreneur Andrew Yang criticized the influence of corporate money on politics and proposed giving Americans “democracy dollars” to counter that problem.

“Why are we losing to the fossil fuel companies? Why are we losing to the gun lobby and the NRA?,” Yang asked on the debate stage Thursday night. “Everyone on the stage knows that our government has been overrun by money and corporate interests. Now everyone here has a plan to try and curb those corporate interests but we have to face facts: Money finds a way. Money will find its way back in.”

Yang said, if elected president, Americans would receive $100 that could only be given to candidates or causes, an approach he claimed would “wash out” special-interest groups.

“The answer is to wash the money out with people powered money,” Yang said. “As someone running for president, I’ll tell you there’s the people on one side and the money on the other. The only way for us to win is we bring them together.”