"Congress Ethics Rules Undermined by Weasels" by Jim Hightower

[StarfarerBill]

"Scientifically speaking, the weasel is in the mustelidae family, but it is not the only burrowing rodent of its genus. There's also the mustela congressa lobbyista, which is that mischievous grouping of Washington lobbyists who habitually team up with certain congress-critters to burrow loopholes in our country's ethics laws.

"You might recall the big ethics reform push of 2007. In January of that year, in response to public outrage over breathtakingly flagrant scandals involving Uber-lobbyist Jack Abramoff and several Republican members of Congress, the new Democratic majority in the U.S. House pushed through a widely ballyhooed set of reforms. Incoming Speaker Nancy Pelosi promised that the changes would deliver "the most honest, ethical and open Congress in history.

"How'd that work out?"

http://www.alternet.org/story/144604/hightower%3A_congress_ethics_rules_undermined_by_weasels_

[Angry Dragon]

1. Whatever is good for his pockets

is good for the country.

[dixiegrrrrl]

2. Promises, promises, etc.

I no longer listen to government.
I watch.

[clear eye]

3. Good modus operandi.

Lately I've been blocking political emails (not those from public interest groups), and reading the news, instead. (I like the online site of The Guardian. This British paper gives better coverage of many things in the U.S. than our papers here do.)

[bertman]

4. Anybody want to put money on whether Pelosi will rescind the Weasel loophole?

Rec.