More on Congress Travel - Both Parties Guilty - Duh!

[rick301]

http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/print?id=706354

Capitol Hill Under Fire for Questionable Trips

Critics Charge Lavish Trips Arranged by Lobbyists

Apr. 26, 2005

From the boulevards of Paris to the beaches of Puerto Rico, members of Congress -- Democrat and Republican -- have taken more than $16 million in trips paid by private sources in the last five years, according to a report released by PoliticalMoneyLine, an independent research group.

At the top of the list, at least monetarily, sits Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., who has taken $167,000 worth of trips.

"Some of them serve a legitimate purpose," said Fred Wertheimer, president of Democracy 21, a government watchdog organization. "Too many of them are simply excuses for people to take vacation-type trips paid by groups that lobby Congress."

Among those whose trips are now being scrutinized is House Ethics Committee member Stephanie Tubbs Jones, a Democrat from Ohio.

According to House disclosure forms Jones filed after a free trip she took with her husband to Puerto Rico four years ago, a Washington lobbying firm, Smith Dawson & Andrews, paid the $3,366 bill, a violation of House ethics rules.

Late last week, Jones quietly changed her disclosure report, removing the name of the lobbying firm and replacing it with a non-profit group in Puerto Rico, which can pay for such travel under House rules.

Jones attributed it to human error but refused to be interviewed.

'Pot Calling the Kettle Black'

At least seven members of Congress or their staff have recently amended their disclosure forms, including the office of Republican Majority Leader Tom DeLay.

A spokesman for DeLay said that they were in the process of carefully examining trips taken by DeLay and staff members.

The ethics issue is a Republican one, according to Democratic Leader of the House, Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.

"Let me just make one statement about the Republicans," she said at a press conference last October. "Their greed will be their downfall. Anyone who has a critical eye about what is appropriate behavior will know that there is abuse of power here. There is behavior that borders on corruption."

But documents obtained by ABC News reveal problems in Pelosi's office as well.

An internal review undertaken by Pelosi's office found that members of her staff took 41 free trips over the last three years, 12 of them not properly disclosed.

Some Republicans felt the Democrats were guilty of a political double-standard.

"It's the pot calling the kettle black," said Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-N.C. "They call their own failure to disclose travel a mere oversight but when Republicans do it they call it a first-rate scandal."

Congress changed its ethics rules for travel 10 years ago following a series of ABC News reports that caught lobbyists and congressmen partying together in island getaways such as Barbados and Captiva Island.

But reformers say more changes are needed.

"Ethics rules were strengthened in the 1990s but they left loopholes for travel and those have been exploited," Wertheimer said.

Now on Capitol Hill, lobbyists say members are afraid to take any free trips, legal or not.

"This doesn't look good for us back home, doesn't look good for us here in Washington, so we're not going to do it," said Paul Miller, president of the American League of Lobbyists. "I think it has caused people to panic a little bit."

[rick301]

I liked this part:

Originally posted by rick301

http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/print?id=706354

...

'Pot Calling the Kettle Black'

...

The ethics issue is a Republican one, according to Democratic Leader of the House, Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.

"Let me just make one statement about the Republicans," she said at a press conference last October. "Their greed will be their downfall. Anyone who has a critical eye about what is appropriate behavior will know that there is abuse of power here. There is behavior that borders on corruption."

But documents obtained by ABC News reveal problems in Pelosi's office as well.

An internal review undertaken by Pelosi's office found that members of her staff took 41 free trips over the last three years, 12 of them not properly disclosed.

Some Republicans felt the Democrats were guilty of a political double-standard.

"It's the pot calling the kettle black," said Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-N.C. "They call their own failure to disclose travel a mere oversight but when Republicans do it they call it a first-rate scandal."

Actually, its politics as usual.

When will politicians learn not to throw stones in glass houses? Instead of trying to bring the other side down, why don't they try to raise above?

[chomerics]

"Let me just make one statement about the Republicans," she said at a press conference last October. "Their greed will be their downfall. Anyone who has a critical eye about what is appropriate behavior will know that there is abuse of power here. There is behavior that borders on corruption."

I agree with her 100% on this, they ARE corrupt. This was a quote from October BTW, not on the recient scandals.

[Thiebear]

I dont think either side is "corrupt".

They just think their entitled to the trips... they stay there for a while and think its a perk..

Corrupt is fudging reports/travel orders etc... If you do it in the open its another flight.. If you lie about the trip on your flight plans = corrupt.

[chomerics]

Originally posted by Thiebear

If you lie about the trip on your flight plans = corrupt. [/b]

That is what they were arguing I believe bear. If I remember correctly, he left the country to go to Korea or Russia without telling the state department.

They also have him illegally accepting funds for a trip from a lobbiest. This is also illegal.

[Thiebear]

I got no problem with clearing house/senate...

There are 300million other capable people... There are people with (bath+toaster) burns that could be there....

[Kilmer17]

The Politburo had a higher turnover rate than Congress did this past year.

Everybody hates Congress, but loves their own Congressman.