House Repairs: Core Ethics Reform

by DemFromCT

An interesting and non-trivial approach to reigning in current House abuses and ethics violations has been suggested by a group of Democratic Representatives. Marty Meehan (D-MA) sums it up:

"There is an ethical cloud hanging over Congress today.  It’s a major reason why Congress has lost the confidence of a majority of Americans.  Ten years after the Republicans came to Congress pledging to clean up Washington, lobbyists have been given unprecedented access to the hallways of power while the American people have been shut out.  The relationship between Congress and K Street has gotten too close and too cozy."

"Our bill reforms the relationship between Congress and K Street in four central ways: enhancing disclosure, curbing privately funded junket by members of Congress, slowing the “revolving door” between government and lobbying, and putting some teeth in how the rules are enforced.  Transparency and disclosure are the centerpieces of any reform effort.  The American people deserve to know how Washington actually works.

Well, that's certainly gotten David Broder's attention (bolded mine), and after I thought he'd written off the Democratic party:

Alumni of the House -- men and women of both parties -- will tell you that they are appalled or nauseated by what has happened there. Last week, in a downtown restaurant, I ran into a former member of the GOP leadership who said, "I'm so thankful I got out when I did."

The place needs a good scrubbing, and that is what it would get if the leadership were somehow to embrace a set of rules changes put forward this week by several longtime members. But because the authors are Democrats -- and in some cases liberal as well -- the receptivity of the Republicans managing the House is not likely to be great.

The four members involved -- David Obey of Wisconsin, Barney Frank of Massachusetts, David Price of North Carolina and Tom Allen of Maine -- held a news conference on Monday at the Center for American Progress to introduce their 14-point plan. It is strong medicine -- a stiff enough dose of salts that even a watered-down version would mark a major change in the ethical environment of Capitol Hill.

On the lobbying front, for example, it would bar any reimbursed travel by a member of the House or its staff unless that person could certify in writing that no lobbyists were invited on the trip, no lobbyists attended the meetings, and whoever sponsored the gathering does not lobby or pay for lobbying.

It would also require former members who exercise their prerogative of visiting the floor of the House while it is in session to guarantee that the House is not debating a subject in which they have a financial interest and that the alumni will not advocate for or against any matter during the visit.

This 14 point plan (here: thanks, RonK) is worth a good look. It could serve as the core of a reform package that every member could run on. The likelihood is that republicans won't, but that's their choice.

Broder worries that maybe once in power the current minority party would forget the principles involved.

At the briefing, Tom Mann of the Brookings Institution, a scholar of Congress, asked the right question when he wondered whether the Democrats would actually adhere to such requirements if they became the House majority in a future election. Price said the requirements would be endorsed by the Democratic caucus and become part of the permanent rules. Frank added that the press would not allow the Democrats to backslide.

Well, that's an experiment worth conducting. Is there anyone who doesn't think the House is in need of reform? Is there anyone who has a better idea? Let's hear it.

Comments

[Pachacutec]

Is this the same legislation that includes provisions to curtail any candidate advocacy or fundraising by blogs, cutting blogs out of the press exemption?

[RonK, Seattle]

Link to the Obey/Frank/Price/Allen package of 14 proposed House Rule reforms, from David Price's House website.

[RonK, Seattle]

Links to info page and bill text for Meehan's H.R.2412.

[Kagro X]

Well, there was an rules reform package featured prominently in the Contract with America, so for those Democrats clamoring for an equivalent, this is a good start.

Almost every single one of the proposals is solid. I'm not so sure about the 10th one -- "Ending Two-Day Work Weeks," though. Not because I don't think they should be more productive when they're in session, but because it's so easy to get around with pro forma sessions. You could pretty much just carry on business as usual despite that rule, and all it would require is a quorum call or a journal vote on Monday.

[Hardy]

I have a proposal.

Death penalty for all corruption in high place.

Hey, they like to act tough on crime, time to apply same rule.

[RonK, Seattle]

The Rules package addresses commonly recognized grievances in a way that brings the nebulous welter of congressional dysfunction into sharp focus.

It is concrete, it nationalizes our Congressional District races (we get the majority, you get the reforms), and it is unequivocally deliverable -- Week One, no excuses -- such that voters can hold us accountable.

Thus it has the essential properties of an electoral mandate.

[DemFromCT]

Hardy, how about commuting the sentence to two years in iraq to relieve a National Guardman from their state?

[Mimikatz]

The provisions about lobbying are important, but ones on House governance, such as curbing the vote extensions and earmark abuses, and the measures to curb abuses of the budget reconciliation process are really important. The abuses of the system shown in the Cunningham case are outrageous. He had money funneled to his contributor buddies when the military had to forego vital pieces of equipment. And of course the are the bridges to nowhere. Having the bill available to be read before voting is another of the points that the House members should think twice about voting against.

This is good stuff--even if it goes nowhere the Dems can bludgeon the GOPers who vote against it. It might make a difference in a few marginal districts.

Meanwhile, the fight to extend the dividend and capital gains tax cuts--which don't expire until 2008--continues apace. This should be another defining vote for both Dems and GOPers. Even if we get the gov't back eventually, the coffers will be filled with nothing but IOUs.

[Mike Surrusco]

I am all for the reforms that have been offered by Meehan, Obey, Feingold, et. al. But unless someone deals with the issue of enforcement in the House, i.e. the moribund ethics committee, more rules will not solve the problem. I wrote a blog on this at : http://www.commonblog.com/story/2005/12/8/144637/563

[RonK, Seattle]

Mike Surrusco -- The proposed rule changes solve parts of the problem, much of it having to do with abuses of process that are not unethical per se, but simplyt undemocratic.

What do you propose, specifically, other than that people in general should behave more nobly than people generally do?

In particular, how would you de-morbidify the Ethics Committee?

[Sara]

I believe those of us not on the inside of the system need to make and widely discuss much deeper reforms.

One that interests me would be a rule that prohibits fudn raising while the House (or the Senate) is in session from any organization or lobbyist having business before congress. This would allow for a campaign committee to raise maney on behalf of a member or challenger in the district to take place, but it would end the money race in DC while congress is in session. Overall, I think it puts good distance between votes in committee and on the floor and the necessary campaign money grubbing.

Likewise, and as a companion to the above, I think there is a need to set a cap on the amount of campaign money that can be raised outside a district or state. I've always liked a 20% cap on out of district money.

[DemFromCT]

I've always liked a 20% cap on out of district money

Does that exist anywhere already?

[Kagro X]

Sara, that would make for an interesting debate among Republicans. Well, if the were honest, that is. So we can forget about that.

But seriously, it'd make for a great theoretical fight between the Mitch McConnell "money is speech, let disclosure be your only rule" team, and the traditional conservative, small government team, which might support the proposal as a way to force Congress to sit for shorter sessions.

[Frankeynstain]

mature vs young hard mature women vieille salope mature amatrice mature fuck young young boy and mature mature vieille mature salope mature young first time mature and young boy < mature old fuck mature woman fucking girl hot mature men mature woman asshole mature pics free grosses.femmesmuresx.com grosse femme mature hairy bush mature mature hot movies film mature fuck dogs mature black busty photo penetration femme mature hot nasty mature galerie nylon mature brune mature nu hot wife mature blowjob woman mature mature free galerie rencontre femme mure femme mure amatrice cochon photo de femme mure hard cum her face mature photo x femme mure femme mure pour jeune homme 19ans mature mom cum photo gratuite fellation femme mure age mure nu gratuite x femme mure femme mure tres poilue photo femme mure amateur exhib rencontre coquin femme mure > femme mure et nu gratuit mure femme mure avec jeune mec recette and confiture and and mure photo x femme mure et ronde photo de femme mure xxx femme mure nu photo photo gratuite vieille mature nu mature busty babe gallery nymphomane mature amatrice lady mature mature drunk suck vieille saint girons photo vieille salope gratuit mature collant nylon galerie gratuite mature mature and granny mature lady posing femme amatrice mature vieille salope .com pipe hard concert hard rock berlin hard rock cafe black orchid rock nantes hard audrey tautou film hard archive journal hard pps hard ecoute musique hard rock couple hard roman photo hard film and x and hard photo hard de brigitte lahaie music hard core teen hard preview hard top nissan navara hard and top rencontre hard gratuite pps hard gratuit hard anal fucking photo gratuite femme hard peugeot dangel 505 hard top dvd x hard discount sodomie hard amateur pps humour hard liste hard discount essonne mature riding hard hard tv net hard xxx gratuit