Posted on 01/06/2006 3:04:44 AM PST by flattorney
As the Jack Abramoff saga unfolds, I have to admit, this will be educational to watch. It's obvious to all, who may be looking for the facts, that this issue will bitch slap Democrats as hard as Republicans. Liberals with their media acting like offensive linemen, will attempt to make this a Republican scandal, while in reality it's a scandal that exposes the breaking of a trust between the elected and the electorate. No matter whom in either party gets nailed in this Greek tragedy, all those who broke the trust and the law need to be taken out.
But of course, there are those who deem the American People dumb as stones and will approach this bi-partisan scandal accordingly. Enter Democrat Leader Nancy Pelosi, complete with talking points for her minion, that are sure to come back and bite her....
Today, Jack Abramoff admitted to conspiring to bribe to Members of Congress a despicable action that strikes at the heart of our democracy. Sadly, it is not a surprise because this Republican Congress is the most corrupt in history and the American people are paying the price.
The Republicans culture of corruption in which Members of Congress cozy up to lobbyists and cronies has resulted in the American people paying higher prescription drug prices, higher gas and home heating costs, and has produced the failed Republican efforts to provide relief to survivors of Hurricane Katrina.
The House Ethics Committee must get to work immediately to investigate pending ethics and corruption cases in the House, including those involving Members with ties to Jack Abramoff. This is a necessary first step to restore a high ethical standard to the Congress. Democrats are committed to a Congress that represents all Americans, not just the special interests.
Speaking of a culture of corruption, let me take you back a few months with this piece by Mike Allen of the Washington Post just last July...
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) filed delinquent reports Friday for three trips she accepted from outside sponsors that were worth $8,580 and occurred as long as seven years ago, according to copies of the documents.
The filing is among hundreds of revisions from members of both parties who have amended missing or incomplete reports as scrutiny of lawmaker travel has intensified.
The most expensive trip was not reported on Pelosi's annual financial disclosure statement or on the travel disclosure form that is required within 30 days of a trip.
A more common violation among members filing corrections was to list a trip on the annual statement but not file the more detailed form about a specific trip. The House ethics committee plans to examine the tardy disclosures after being stalled since January in partisan disputes.
Committee members have shown no appetite for taking up all those cases and are considering an amnesty for reporting violations, although not for serious matters such as accepting a trip from a lobbyist, which House rules forbid. The data firm PoliticalMoneyLine calculates that members of Congress have received more than $18 million in travel from private organizations in the past five years, with Democrats taking 3,458 trips and Republicans taking 2,666.
Pelosi, who was elected House Democratic leader in November 2002, said in a letter to the ethics committee: "Although the current travel issue has focused on trips that have taken place since 2000, I have further reviewed my record of privately funded travel prior to becoming part of the Democratic Leadership." She said that "as a result," she was filing three forms, two for trips that she had reported on her annual statements.
The unreported trip was a week-long 1999 visit to Taiwan, paid for by the Chinese National Association of Industry and Commerce, for "meetings with government, military and business officials," according to a filing Pelosi signed June 30. The flights cost $3,400 each for Pelosi and her husband. The hotel cost was $940. The sponsor, which has picked up trips for leaders of both parties, paid $300 for meals.
Pelosi said she had provided "a good faith estimate" of the cost of the other two trips, since her "office records for that period do not indicate the costs." In 1998, NBC paid for a $200 trip to New York for a "Meet the Press" appearance, according to the filing. In 1999, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee paid $300 for transportation to Delray Beach, Fla., and $40 for meals for Pelosi to appear at a reception and briefing.
Whoops. - - Nancy's words will come back and bite her, and when they do, she'll spin, she'll point fingers, she may even cry. But seeing how this scandal may touch almost every United States Senator, Pelosi may be lamenting how lousy she'll look wearing orange.
Let's just wait and see, shall we...?
Well I guess high is a relative term. Of course these are politicians after all.
The ethical standards of the US Congress would probably fare rather well in comparison to politicians of say Zimbabwe.
What words? Yahoo and friends pulled the article containing those words, therefore the sheeple couldn't possible know about her words ;)
TERM LIMITS!!!!!
This is big. She is a terrible leader and spokesperson for her party. The Democrats have finally had enough of her.
One of Abramoff's biggest bribes was to Harry Reid (Democrat-Nevada), who got $68,000. There is practically NO mention of this in the news stories about "Republican corruption." And the Republicans are too scared to mention it when interviewed, even on Fox. Hillary just had a $700,000 illegal campaign donation settled for $35,000, and the msm isn't interested. Pathetic.
... as if she would be smart enough to recognize it.
Ha!
The quickest way to improve Congress involves some very minor changes:
1. Washington is corrupt because of the power concentrated there. Send Congress home for 27 weeks out of every year. They, the Congressmen and Senators are supposed to work for us so why arent they home with us? Any Congressional junket counts as time spent in Washington. Want to bet trips to Antarctica and Taiwan would suddenly stop?
2. Washington is corrupt because there is no feedback - they literally dont know how much they are spending. At the opening of Congress and then monthly thereafter have the Treasury Department balance the books by telling Congress how much their various bills have spent out of the funds available to that Congress. We do it every time we write a check so why dont they? When Congress has spent the last dime they are either done for the year or every bill thereafter had to have a new tax bill to support it.
3. Every bill presented has an automatic sunset provision. The law goes off the books unless Congress renews it and confirms the funding. This should reduce the building of empires as the financial crunch caused by # 2 above takes effect. We do it in our own budgets why not Congress?
4, Finally, any Congressional activity not accomplished during its 25 weeks inside the Beltway can not be automatically carried over to the next session; it was follow the same process as a brand new bill.
Congress has considerable power to grant themselves perks and privileges not available to the rest of us. Why not make them work for them?
Great article. Im posting this as a new thread with credit to you, for several reasons. FlAttorney is out until next week, never mind he has two attorneys and two staff going full steam on his Casino Jack (Abramoff) Democrats of Corruption project, and wearing the phone out. Some great dirt coming out of that 4 week old project. Anyway, FLA is the one that knows the Pelosi-Steny Hoyer dog-fight dirt.
My understanding is that there is a REAL big story here! Part of it is that while the Dems bash Tom DeLay over his K-Street connections, House Minority Whip Hoyer, a team of his sides Dems he is leading, and some of Hoyer's aides are kissing K-Street lobbyists rear to get their 06 donation money-business under the assumption that the Dems-Soros Mob will be successful in dragging down Tom DeLay. Tom has been the #1 money raiser on the Hill now for 6 years, and the Dems want his turf. Real DC Mob turf battle shaping up the last several months. Hoyer and his clan is staying beneath the radar and Pelosi is staying on the sidelines because she is spineless, and hoping Hoyer will screw-up and shoot himself in the foot.
Of course, Hoyer in primary, and Pelosi in secondary, are involved in the Casino Jack Scandal, mostly Steny. MSM hasn't touched Hoyer yet, but his time is coming, just like it is for many other hypocrite Democrats tied to this Abramoff mess. TAB
ps: Fraud Reid - Hoyer - Pelosi ranting on the GOP Culture of Corruption. I would post the video but too many fine people here would probably puke from watching it. What a bunch of maggots.
She's untouchable - a Democrat.
Now why did you have to post a picture of "plastic puss pelosi?" Yuck, its too early in the AM.
While this has appeal it whould present some practical obsticals.
If you had to resubmit and debate every bill that is past periodically there would be no time left for new laws. Especially with only 25 weeks in a session.
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