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DeMint: Sham Ethics Bill is Business as Usual
Weak Reform Allows Secret Earmarks, Will Not Stop Culture of Corruption |
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August 2, 2007 - Washington, D.C. - U.S Senator Jim DeMint (R-South Carolina) today voted against the Senate lobbying bill that lacked real earmark and ethics reform.
“This bill is a charade meant to give cover to politicians who want to continue secret earmarks,” said Senator DeMint. “Sadly, more members are worried about having a good sound-bite for their next election than they are about doing what’s right and being honest with America. This was about incumbency protection and pretending to do something.”
“This bill won't even begin to stop corruption in Washington, because the earmark favor factory will remain open and ready for business. Politicians will still be able to use these secret earmarks to direct millions of taxpayer dollars to special interests. You can hear the champagne bottles being uncorked all over K Street, because the lobbyists know it will be business as usual.”
According to the nonpartisan watchdog group Citizens Against Government Waste, earmarks have exploded in recent years. In 1991, Congress earmarked 546 projects costing taxpayers $3.1 billion. In 2005 that number increased to 13,997 earmarks costing taxpayers $27.3 billion.
In January, the Senate unanimously approved real earmark reform that would have required 100% of earmarks to be disclosed to the public and given every senator the ability to hold committees accountable. However, after six months of blocking the enactment of these strong ethics rules, Senate Democrat leaders secretly gutted earmark reform.
Today, they forced a vote on the new bill that allows secret earmarks to continue. It also eliminated many other important taxpayer safeguards: it allows senators to trade earmarks for votes, it allows senators to provide earmarks that financially benefit themselves or their families, it still allows senators to drop earmarks into bills when they are in conference and cannot be fully debated and voted on; it allows senators to get around disclosing earmarks on the Internet in a timely way; and it allows senators to avoid having to put their no-conflict certification letter on the Internet in a timely way.
Senator DeMint offered an amendment to restore full earmark reform, however he was blocked from receiving a vote. Also, during the debate, presiding officer U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) was forced to concede that the Senate Parliamentarian would not be permitted to verify completeness and accuracy of earmark disclosure.
“Republicans and Democrats that voted for this sham reform should know that Americans aren’t stupid and they won’t be fooled. Americans know the Senate missed its best chance to drain the swamp in Washington and stop secret earmarks that have led to so much corruption. I will continue to fight for real earmark reform and I will continue to shine a light on this corrosive system.”
Background: Wall Street Journal – “Earmarks as Usual”
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