[Dialogue] The No-Reform Lobby Reform Bill

[Harry Wainwright]

Published on Tuesday, May 2, 2006 by TruthDig <http://www.truthdig.com>  

The No-Reform Lobby Reform Bill 

by Molly Ivins 

Either the so-called "lobby reform bill" is the contemptible, cheesy, shoddy
piece of hypocrisy it appears to be ... or the Republicans have a sense of
humor. 

The "lobby reform" bill does show, one could argue, a sort of cheerful,
defiant, flipping-the-bird-at-the-public attitude that could pass for humor.
You have to admit that calling this an "ethics bill' requires brass bravura.


House Republicans returned last week from a two-week recess prepared to vote
for "a relatively tepid ethics bill," as The Washington Post put it, because
they said their constituents rarely mentioned the issue. 

Forget all that talk back in January when Jack Abramoff was indicted. What
restrictions on meals and gifts from lobbyists? More golfing trips!
According to Rep. Nancy L. Johnson of Connecticut, former chair of the House
ethic committee, passage of the bill will have no political consequences
"because people are quite convinced that the rhetoric of reform is just
political." 

Where can they have gotten that idea? Rep. David Hobson, R-Ohio, told the
Post, "We panicked, and we let the media get us panicked." 

By George, here's the right way to think of it. The entire Congress lies
stinking in open corruption, but they can't let the media panic them.
They're actually proud of NOT cleaning it up. 

The House bill passed a procedural vote last week 216 to 207, and it is
scheduled for floor debate and a final vote on Wednesday-which gives
citizens who don't like being conned a chance to speak. Now is the time for
a little hell-raising. 

Chellie Pingree of Common Cause said, "This legislation is so weak it's
embarrassing." Fred Wertheimer, president of Democracy 21 and a longtime
worker in reformist vineyards, said: "This bill is based on the premise that
you can fool all of the people all of the time. This is an attempt at one of
the greatest legislative scams that I have seen in 30 years of working on
these issues." 

Come on, people, get mad. You deserve to be treated with contempt if you let
them get away with this. 

I'm sorry that all these procedural votes seem so picayune, and I know the
cost of gas and health insurance are more immediate worries. But it is
precisely the corruption of Congress by big money that allows the oil and
insurance industries to get away with these fantastic rip-offs. 

Watching Washington be taken over by these little sleaze merchants is not
only expensive and repulsive, it is destroying America, destroying any sense
we ever had that we're a nation, not 298 million individuals cheating to get
ahead. 

I'm sorry these creeps in Congress have so little sense of what they're
supposed to be about that they think it's fine to sneer at ethics. But they
work for us. It's our job to keep them under control until we can replace
them. Time to get up off our butts and take some responsibility here. Let
them hear from you. 

Molly Ivins is the former editor of the liberal monthly The Texas
<http://www.texasobserver.org/>  Observer. She is the bestselling author of
several books including Who Let the Dogs In?
<http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1400062853/commondreams-20/ref=nosim
/>  

C 2006 TruthDig.com, LLC

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