GOVERNMENT / THE ELITE - LOOKING GLASS NEWS | |
Beyond DeLay: The 20 Most Corrupt Members of Congress |
|
from Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washingt
Entered into the database on Wednesday, September 20th, 2006 @ 15:02:30 MST |
|
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Over the course of the 109th Congress, the issue of congressional ethics has
taken on new resonance. Where questionable conduct was once shrugged off as
“business as usual,” now both the public and the press are demanding
greater accountability from members of Congress. An August 2006 Harris poll
shows that 77% of Americans have a negative view of Congress and while a May
2006 Gallup poll indicates that 83% of Americans consider corruption a serious
issue, and 64% believe that dealing with corruption should be a high priority
for Congress. The 20 Most Corrupt Members of Congress In the last two years, the careers of three members have ended as a result
of corruption: former Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX) has been indicted in
Texas and is facing possible federal indictment in the Jack Abramoff scandal;
Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham is now serving an eight-year jail term
for bribery though the federal probe into his activities remains open and may
yet encompass other members of Congress; and Rep. Bob Ney has agreed to plead
to guilty to crimes that will likely result in a minimum two-year prison term.
In addition, several other members, including Reps. William Jefferson, Alan
Mollohan and Jerry Lewis, and Sens. Conrad Burns and Bill Frist are also under
federal investigation. Dishonorable Mentions When CREW released its report last year, we called it “Beyond DeLay,”
because although Rep. DeLay’s ethical transgressions were the most publicized,
we believed that there were other members whose behavior merited scrutiny. Last
year’s report included 13 members, while this year’s report includes
a startling 20 with five dishonorable mentions. We attribute the increase, in
part, to a press corps more attuned to the issue of congressional ethics with
the result that there have been a greater number of investigative pieces on
members’ conduct. In the following report, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington
(CREW) documents the unethical activities of 25 members of Congress: 17 House
Members and three Senators and five members whose known conduct isn’t
severe enough for them to make the list, but bears notice. The biggest problem:
the members on this list have abused their positions for the financial benefit
of themselves, their friends and their families. Some do this by hiring unqualified
family members, some allow family members to lobby them and many use the legislative
process to earmark for the financial benefit of themselves and specific individuals.
Members need to be reminded that a career in public service is not intended
to be lucrative. If members want to get rich, they should become lobbyists.
Although much of the information included in this report has been published
in other places, there is no other comparable compilation of the information
in one place. Despite the appalling conduct of members of both houses, but particularly the
House of Representatives – as well as the largest scandal in congressional
history - the ethics committees ignominiously persist in turning a blind eye
and a deaf ear to the conduct of their colleagues. If Congress is not going
to police itself – and the evidence clearly demonstrates that it is not
– the ethics committees should be disbanded and the charade ended. Thankfully,
the Department of Justice does not share Congress’s willful myopia to
corruption. METHODOLOGY To create this report, CREW reviewed articles, Federal Election Commission
reports and audits, sworn testimony, emails, and personal financial and travel
disclosure forms. We then analyzed that information to determine whether the
information discovered suggested that a Member of Congress’s conduct violated
any federal laws, regulations or congressional ethics rules. Footnote: References to companies making campaign contributions are shorthand
for campaign contributions by those companies’ political action committees
and employees and, in some cases, their immediate families. We are not ____________________________ Read from Looking Glass News |