Reply #9: WP: GOP Freezes Jobs List, a Vestige of the K Street Project (Santorum)

[deminks]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/25/AR2006012502240.html?nav=rss_politics

Republican lawmakers yesterday ended their long practice of routinely summoning lobbyists to the Capitol to try to persuade them to hire their aides and colleagues, in the wake of the Jack Abramoff political corruption scandal.

GOP lawmakers for years have regularly presented lists of job openings on K Street to lobbyists to encourage them to hire Republicans over Democrats. The program is a remnant of the K Street Project once championed by Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Tex.) as a way to coerce trade associations and companies to hire Republicans as their top lobbyists and to warn firms that hired Democrats that they would not be welcome.

The decision to drop the list comes as Santorum is being disparaged by his opponents in Washington and at home as the "liaison to the K Street Project." Senate Minority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) last week said Santorum is "as responsible as anyone in the world for the K Street Project." He added that Santorum was unsuited to serve in his current role as the Republicans' point man in the effort to overhaul lobbying laws.

But Democratic attacks on Santorum and the K Street Project will continue, lawmakers said. Yesterday, Reid and Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) wrote Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs, to ask for an investigation of the project. "What we seek to do is just shine a little sunlight on this K Street Project and have one of our committees investigate what happened so that we can see if there's legislation needed," Schumer said.

Also read Americablog from yesterday regarding Ricky's outburst when a reporter asked him about the meetings.

http://americablog.blogspot.com/2006/01/santorum-blows-his-stack-at-reporter.html