"Culture of Corruption"? We hadn't seen anything yet...

[Overpaid Slacker]

Captain's Quarters:
All we heard from the Democrats during the 2006 midterm elections was how the Republicans had created a "culture of corruption". The GOP left itself open to those charges, without a doubt, by their profligate spending and individual cases of actual corruption, such as Bob Ney and Randy "Duke" Cunningham. Of course, the Democrats had William "Dollar Bill" Jefferson and Alan Mollohan, but they promised that all lobbyist influence and vote payoff systems would screech to a halt under Democratic management of Congress.

Yesterday gave us two examples of how the Democrats will fulfill this campaign pledge. First, the new Congress still can't get its own members to support even watered-down ethics legislation:

After scrapping most key elements of an ethics package meant to deliver on Democratic promises to bring unprecedented accountability to Congress, party leaders were still working into the night yesterday to sell their stripped-down bill to the rank and file.

With a vote on the bill slated for tomorrow, leading Democrats were fighting yesterday to keep its meatiest remaining piece, a provision unmasking the lobbyists behind bundles of contributions delivered to lawmakers.

But even that faced significant opposition from conservative "Blue Dog" Democrats and members of the Congressional Black Caucus. ...

Resistance springs from a sea change in the business of politics in recent years. Nearly half of the members of Congress who left office between 1998 and 2004 became lobbyists, according to a study by watchdog group Public Citizen. That lure, combined with spiraling campaign costs and lawmakers' reluctance to reveal any links to K Street, have cooled enthusiasm for the lobbying disclosure bill, even as investigations stemming from lobbyist Jack Abramoff's influence peddling continue. From: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/22/AR2007052201394.html?nav=rss_politics


Why don't they want to reveal the bundling lobbyists? Because they want the money. CBC member Sanford Bishop has been tasked with rounding up votes in the caucus, but he's finding it a tough slog. Bishop says members want ethics reform, but not at the expense of campaign contributions, which is somewhat akin to endorsing traffic lights but not tickets for violations.

Rahm Emanuel still believes that he can get the votes to make the ethics bill meaningful. He and Marty Meehan want to offer amendments for everything that the Democrats had to strip out of the bill to get even the meagre support they've received, but that seems like a long shot for success. Even the party leader on pork, John Murtha, calls the bill "total crap".

And he should know. Last night, the Democrats failed to hold him accountable for an egregious ethics violation, one in which he threatened to punish a Republican for challenging a pork project in Murtha's district:

House Democrats spared Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.) from a parliamentary slap on the wrist by defeating a resolution aimed at reprimanding him for allegedly threatening to revoke another lawmaker’s earmarks.

Democrats successfully killed the privileged resolution by a vote of 219-189 as Rep. Tim Murphy (R-Pa.) joined Democrats to table the motion while Democratic Reps. Earl Blumenauer (Ore.) and Jim Cooper (Tenn.) voted with the Republicans. Thirteen lawmakers voted present. ...

During the vote, several Democratic lawmakers joked and laughed with Murtha as they sat in the so-called Pennsylvania corner of the House floor. From: http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/dems-save-murtha-a-slap-2007-05-23.html


Why bother to even pass this ethics bill? Democrats have conclusively shown that they won't hold their own members accountable for violating the current set of ethics rules. Dana Milbank expands in his inimitable, snarky fashion:

Apparently, the credulous Rogers took seriously the quaint provision in the Code of Official Conduct stating that a member "may not condition the inclusion of language to provide funding for a Congressional earmark . . . on any vote cast by another member." "There's not going to be any more go-along-to-get-along, 1950s-style American politics around here," Rogers told The Post's Jonathan Weisman. "I've had enough."
Maybe Rogers has had enough, but it is the considered sense of the House that the "go-along-to-get-along" method has merit.


The Democrats haven't even spent their first six months in power before reneging on their campaign promises. The culture of corruption is alive and well, just under different management. John Murtha reigns supreme over earmarks, and woe betide the Congressman of either party that dares to cross him.

That's what America wanted when it put Democrats in charge, right? And note that they still haven't delivered a single item on their 100-hour legislative agenda. They're not just a Do-Nothing Congress; they're also a See-Nothing, Say-Nothing Congress.

Got the stomach for more? http://majorityap.com/freshmen_fail_first_ethics_test

And before we get the tired "everybody does it..." relativist bullshtein... this issue of character was in large part what the Democrats used to get elected. "Everybody does it" was not an exasperated acknowledgment of politics as usual on both sides of the aisle, as there was certainly no room to excuse any Republican under that license.

And "everybody lies"...OK, true enough, but as I've said before, the Democrats think you're stupid and lie so brazenly right to your face, under cover of an indulgent and aprosexic media.

BTW, Democratic-controlled Congress is enjoying approval ratings several points lower than the much-reported President's.

JP

[Overpaid Slacker]

Meet the new boss... it's the same as (what the new boss claimed about) the old boss...

From Porkbusters:

The House Appropriations Committee has decided to insert earmarks into all of the FY08 spending bills during the conferencing committees, instead of during the initial House-only process.

This will prevent lawmakers like Jeff Flake from offering amendments to strip out wasteful pork projects...which is EXACTLY why David Obey, the Approps Chairman, is changing the rules. In defending his move, Obey said ($),

"It's my job to protect the committee."

Apparently, Obey's job to protect the American taxpayer is a lower priority. In a recent press release, Flake said, "This is a huge step backwards on earmark reform. As bad as the earmark process is now, this would make it immensely worse."

On this, the porkbusting blogosphere should raise its alert status to DEFCON 1. First the Murtha debacle and now this? Things are getting out of control.

[Rick Lee]

Heard about that lawsuit between John Boehner (R-OH) and Jim McDermott (D-WA)? Long story short: 10 yrs. ago a old FL couple recorded via scanner a cell phone conversation between Boehner and Newt Gingrich, then House Speaker. The FL couple handed the tape to their Congresswoman, Karen Thurman (D-FL). She gave it to McDermott, who was on the House Ethics Comm. McDermott made it public. Ethics Comm. reprimanded McDermott. Boehner sued him and won. McDermott appealed. Boehner offered to drop it all for a public apology and a $10k donation to charity. McDermott refused. Now McDermott has been ordered to pay Boehner's legal fees to the tune of $880k!!!!!! And this guy is still in Congress, but thankfully, no longer on the Ethics Comm. Oh, he's refusing to pay and says it will go to the SCOTUS.

[tabs]

As I said the Democrats would have burned down their own house to get their snounts back intot the trough of the public treasury. Thats what it is all about. Expressed idealism on both sides of the aisle turns into meaningless rhetoric and the only thing that counts is the Green Stuff with "In God We Trust" printed on the back.

Exactly what does that mean for Americans of either political persuasion...your toast is cooked.

[speeder]

This is getting pathetic. The only retorts GOP dead-enders have to charges of gross incompetence and corruption in their leaders is to point to Democratic wrongdoing or incompetence.

I have news for you guys, this is becoming a nation of independent voters, at least I hope so. My weathervane tells me that Joe Q. Public is fed up w/ both parties. How you can defend Republicans in a time when they are shown to be the worst political hacks ever is mind-boggling.

[Rearden]

Originally posted by speeder
This is getting pathetic. The only retorts GOP dead-enders have to charges of gross incompetence and corruption in their leaders is to point to Democratic wrongdoing or incompetence.

Coming from one of the more consistent Republicans-are-incompetent-and-corrupt voices.

Pot - kettle - black

[kach22i]

Originally posted by speeder
This is getting pathetic. The only retorts GOP dead-enders have to charges of gross incompetence and corruption in their leaders is to point to Democratic wrongdoing or incompetence.

It's like I know what they are going to say even before they say it. It's outright scary how they react, or don't react in most cases.

[Tim Hancock]

Pot-kettle-black indeed. Hypocrisy at it finest.

[hardflex]

You're right Speeder. They really have nothing else to say.

I challenge anyone here to randomly listen to any of the right wing talk radio guys and if they go more than 30 seconds without bashing a "liberal" I'll buy the beer. It embarasses me, because I was a Reagan Republican...

[Tim Hancock]

Originally posted by hardflex
You're right Speeder. They really have nothing else to say.

I challenge anyone here to randomly listen to any of the right wing talk radio guys and if they go more than 30 seconds without bashing a "liberal" I'll buy the beer. It embarasses me, because I was a Reagan Republican...

More pot-kettle-black.

I can understand why you are embarassed.

[hardflex]

What I can't understand is why YOU'RE NOT?

whatever, not worthy of mental time spent

[Tim Hancock]

Originally posted by hardflex
What I can't understand is why YOU'RE NOT?

whatever, not worthy of mental time spent

I agree wholeheartedly with you for once!

[Moneyguy1]

Once again...attack, attack, attack, and find that the blame lies with the other guys. Easy way out, fellas....

But if it makes you feel better......

[Tim Hancock]

More pot-kettle-black.....yawn