Common Cause is encouraged by the US Senate's overwhelming vote for stronger ethics and lobbying reforms. Last night, the Senate voted 96-2 to approve a bill that will bring the toughest changes in those areas since the Watergate scandals of the 1970s. These reforms will help Congress leave behind some of the corruption that has tainted Capitol Hill.<\/p>
\"In recent years, far too many members have been investigated, convicted or resigned under a cloud of scandal,\" said Common Cause President Chellie Pingree, on the same day that former Rep. Bob Ney (R-OH) was sentenced to 30 months in jail for his involvement in a federal bribery scandal. \"Corruption in Congress was one of the biggest reasons Americans voted for change last fall. We welcome the Senate in its decision to move away from corruption and toward open, ethical government.\"<\/p>
En vertu du projet de loi approuv\u00e9 par le S\u00e9nat, les lobbyistes ne pourront plus offrir de repas, de cadeaux et de voyages gratuits aux s\u00e9nateurs. Les s\u00e9nateurs devront \u00e9galement payer des tarifs charters pour voyager en jet priv\u00e9, au lieu des tarifs moins \u00e9lev\u00e9s en premi\u00e8re classe qu'ils paient actuellement. Et les s\u00e9nateurs devront attendre deux ans, au lieu d'un, avant de pouvoir faire pression sur leurs anciens coll\u00e8gues.<\/p>
Le projet de loi supprimerait \u00e9galement les pensions des membres reconnus coupables de certains crimes et obligerait les s\u00e9nateurs \u00e0 fournir davantage de transparence sur les cr\u00e9dits qu'ils placent dans les projets de loi pour financer leurs projets favoris.<\/p>
Lobbyists must also disclose when they \"bundle\" campaign contributions from their clients, cannot hire members' spouses or pay for the parties that take place at the presidential nominating conventions every four years.<\/p>
The bill could go further. It did not create an outside independent ethics office or commission to investigate ethics complaints or abuses. And the Senate cut out stronger disclosure requirements for grassroots organizations, which was intended to identify special-interest groups that organized fake citizens' campaigns. <\/p>
\"We like the strong reforms the Senate approved,\" Pingree said. \"But reforms are not enough. To completely get away from the corruption we've seen, Congress must police itself more seriously. The best way to do that is through an independent ethics body within Congress and through public financing of congressional elections. We will continue to push for Congress to adopt these reforms and become the honest and transparent institution Americans deserve.\"<\/p>"}}]},"yoast_head":"\n