Political Cortex: Brain Food for the Body Politic

How Ironic is it that the Republican party jumped on this opportunity to be the saviors of fair government, a mere 13 days after abandoning their plans to loosen rules governing members' ethical conduct.

The proposal would have made it more difficult for lawmakers to discipline a colleague for unethical behavior and would have allowed Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Tex.) to keep his post if he is indicted by a Texas grand jury that is looking into his campaign finance practices. The G.O.P. finally scrapped the proposal, yielding to pressure from rank-and-file lawmakers concerned that the party was sending the wrong message. After all, Tom DeLay is at the heart of the controversy, did they think that loosening the ethics rules to help DeLay keep his post would go unnoticed?

Thursday afternoon (12/19/06) on NPR's, All Things Considered, I heard House Rules Committee Chairman David Dreier (R-Calif.) being interviewed about the G.O.P.'s new plan on Lobbying Reform, in contrast to the House Democrat plan which was released today. Mr. Dreier kept emphasizing that, "the Republican Party is the Party of Reform... When we are done with this reform, we will have more reforms". The proposal, spearheaded by Rep. David Dreier, R-Glendora, would ban lawmakers from accepting all corporate-sponsored trips; prohibit all but inconsequential gifts like baseball caps and T-shirts; and force lawmakers convicted of felonies to forfeit their congressional pensions. Dreier said GOP leaders also plan to make former House members wait two years before registering as lobbyists, instead of the current one year; and plan to pass separate legislation the day Congress returns to work Feb. 1 blocking former lawmakers who now work as lobbyists from the House floor and the congressional gymnasium. "I believe that this is a very, very, very exciting opportunity for us," Dreier said.

I have to hand it to the G.O.P.; those sure are some sweeping reform ideas.

Here's what I really think: - I think that the G.O.P. was eager to get out on the field before the Dems. They rushed this substandard plan through, to save face, and politicize the issue to lean in their favor as being the leaders on this issue. This way, the talking points for the release of the Dems reform plan, can be as simple as,"These guys never have an original thought". However, in the quickly prepared G.O.P. plan, they were very careful to not bite the hand that feeds them. They left the K-Street `Pay-to-Play' projects alone and focused on relatively benign issues such as adding an additional year to the length of time before a former congressman can register as a lobbyist.

Instead of limiting the value of a gift to $20, as House Republicans are considering, Democrats would prohibit all gifts from lobbyists. Democrats also attack some of the legislative practices that have become established in the past 10 years of Republican rule in Congress. They vowed to end the K-Street Project, a program in which Republicans in Congress pressure lobbying organizations to hire only Republican staff members and contribute only to Republican candidates. Who are the real reformers here?

The Republican Party has learned volumes from Karl Rove. Perhaps the most important lesson learned was to keep telling half-truths or lies often enough and the masses will take it as fact. The average American does not research the validity of the claims that they hear from either side. However, when they hear the same lie over and over again, it sinks in as, "Oh yeah, I've heard of this before" and it is believed. Keep in mind that repetition like this is how toddlers are taught, ever see Teletubbies? The lie here is that The G.O.P. is the party of reform. The G.O.P. is the party of corruption and abuse of power. They fear real reform which can threaten their corrupt ways of governing and their huge cash contributions from lobbyists.

Wednesday (12/18/06), the Democrats released their plan to reform the ethics in Congress. While there are similarities, the Democrats plan goes much further to truly putting an end to the abuse and corruption in the House.

Here are the Democrat's plans.

Close the Revolving Door. Close the revolving door between the Congress and lobbying firms by doubling (from one year to two) the cooling-off period during which lawmakers, senior Congressional staff, and Executive Branch officials are prohibited from lobbying their former offices. Eliminate floor privileges for former Members of Congress and officers of the Senate and House who return to lobby.

Toughen Public Disclosure of Lobbyist Activity. Significantly expand the information lobbyists must disclose - including campaign contributions and client fees. Require them to file disclosure reports electronically, and increase the frequency of those filings. Require lobbyists to certify that they did not violate the rules, and make them subject to criminal penalties for false certifications.

Ban Lobbyist Gifts and Travel. Prohibit the receipt of gifts, including gifts of meals, entertainment and travel, from lobbyists.

Shut Down Pay-to-Play Schemes Like the "K Street Project." End efforts like the "K Street Project," which Republicans created to tell corporations and lobbying firms whom they should hire in exchange for political access.

Disclosure of Outside Job Negotiations. Requires lawmakers to disclose when they are negotiating private sector jobs, and requires Executive Branch officials who are negotiating private sector jobs to receive approval from the independent Office of Government Ethics.

Prohibit "Dead of Night" Special Interest Provisions. Require that all conference committee meetings be open to the public and that members of the conference committee have a public opportunity to vote on all amendments. Make copies of conference reports available to Members, and post them publicly on the Internet, 24 hours before consideration (unless waived by a supermajority vote).

Zero Tolerance for Contract Cheaters. Restore accountability and openness in federal contracting by subjecting major contract actions to public disclosure and aggressive competition; criminally prosecuting contractors who cheat taxpayers, with penalties including suspension and debarment; imposing stiff criminal and civil penalties for wartime fraud on government contracting; prohibiting contractors with conflicts of interest from conducting oversight or writing contract requirements they could bid on; mandating full disclosure of contract overcharges; creating tough penalties for improper no-bid contracts; and closing the revolving door between federal contract officials and private contractors.

Prohibit Cronyism in Key Appointments. End rampant cronyism by requiring that any individual appointed to a position involving public safety possess proven credentials, and training or expertise in one or more areas relevant to the position.
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In all fairness, I really wanted to post the entire Republican plan. However they are so embarrassed by its lack of content that they didn't even post it on their website. In fact, I could only find the references to it online, but never found the plan in its entirety.