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McCain, Obama settle feud over lobbying reform

Posted on: Wednesday, 8 February 2006, 17:14 CST

By Andy Sullivan

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama patched up a feud and pledged on Wednesday to work together to enact new lobbying limits in the wake of the Jack Abramoff influence-peddling scandal.

The Arizona Republican and the Illinois Democrat, who exchanged sharply worded letters this week, told the Senate Rules Committee they both want to reconcile competing measures to reform the pervasive Washington practice of plying lawmakers with donations and favors to try to influence legislation.

"Senator Obama and I are moving on and are continuing to work together and I value his input," said McCain.

Obama put his arm around McCain for the benefit of photographers, and called McCain his "pen pal."

McCain had accused Obama of "partisan posturing" after Obama urged him to consider a reform bill backed by nearly all Senate Democrats instead of an approach suggested by the Senate Majority Leader, Tennessee Republican Bill Frist.

Among the proposed reforms is one that would limit the ability of lawmakers to secretly insert spending measures at the end of the legislative process.

Washington's lucrative lobbying industry has come under scrutiny in recent months since the Abramoff scandal ensnared several prominent Republicans, including former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay of Texas.

Abramoff pleaded guilty last month to plying unnamed lawmakers with gifts and travel junkets to win influence for his clients.

RULES CHANGED

The House of Representatives has already changed its rules to ban former members of Congress who become registered lobbyists from its chamber and gym, though Democrats say that will have little effect.

Both McCain's bill and the one backed by Obama would require greater disclosure of lobbying activities and double the "cooling off" period to two years before former members of congress can lobby their colleagues.

The Democratic bill would also ban gifts from lobbyists and prohibit privately funded travel by members of Congress.

Wisconsin Democratic Sen. Russell Feingold said lawmakers should also be required to pay for their own meals.

"If you really want to have dinner with a lobbyist, no one is saying that you can't. Just take out your credit card and pay your own way," he said.

A ban on meals would be "going off the total deep end," countered Mississippi Republican Sen. Trent Lott, who chairs the Rules Committee. "We ought to ban gifts, but the meals thing is going to far."

Several lawmakers said that the practice of inserting last-minute "earmarks" into massive spending bills needs to be brought under control. Documents show that Abramoff tried to use this tactic to win favors for his Indian tribe clients.

Obama suggested that an independent committee made up of retired judges and ex-lawmakers should ensure that the new rules are enforced.

"We can pass all the new ethics in the world but if we don't establish a body that can monitor and enforce those rules it will be very easy to break them," he said.

Lott said his committee will vote on reform legislation in the last week of February.

Source: REUTERS

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