Astute observations and interesting solutions. Clearly, what worked in the past is not working now. There never will be a guarantee of scrupulous politicians but we can always try to make things better. My own suggestions:

Short-term; Reconstitute the Talking-filibuster. Force these reprehensible senators to stand up and defend the indefensible until they’re hoarse, then vote and pass legislation by a simple majority. Note that this is exactly what happened with Kevin McCarthy’s recent phony filibuster in the House. Make them show us who they are instead of hiding behind an irrational senate rule.

Long-term; Parties are obsolete, except for the money. One-third of the country identifies as either Democrat, Republican or independent. Why not reimagine a third-party as independent voters, raising grass-roots funds and garnering support on the web? Swing voters voting for swing politicians forcing both left and right to accommodate the middle – where most of America resides.