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Jan. 18, 2007 -- Senate Attempt to Derail Lobbying & Ethics Reform: Statement of Meredith McGehee, Campaign Legal Center Yesterday Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) threw a grenade in the wheelhouse of lobbying and ethics reform. Joined by all but two of his fellow Republicans in the Senate, the Minority Leader led a cynical effort to kill legislation demanded by voters in November to clean up Washington. The Republican maneuver was an attempt to muddy the waters in the debate and deflect blame, but it had the clear and devastating goal of scuttling the ethics and lobbying overhaul. Despite the best efforts of Senate Republicans, this issue and the public outrage that led to the introduction of these reform proposals will not go away. A number of former Senators made the mistake of thinking the outrage would go away before the last election.
For the Senators who voted against cloture, it is as if last November's election, which was defined by the voters' concerns about corruption in Washington, never happened. Voter disgust with the corrupt status quo in Washington, expressed so clearly on Election Day, somehow did not register with Senator McConnell and his colleagues who voted to kill ethics and lobby reform.
Yesterday's vote to block ethics and lobby reform was more about power politics than good policy, and was an example of the partisan power plays that make most Americans hold Congress in such low regard. Senator McConnell and his colleagues apparently are more interested in demonstrating their ability to wield power over the Senate schedule than in enacting needed ethics reforms. It is especially disheartening to see Senators John McCain (R-AZ) and Susan Collins (R-ME) choose partisan loyalty over the reforms they have claimed to support. Their excuses for supporting this maneuver to derail ethics reform ring hollow.
Any Senator who will be facing the voters in 2008 and who continues to block these reforms will have a lot of explaining to do. They will have to explain to their constituents why they turned their back on reform and toed the line for Minority Leader McConnell, who makes no secret of the fact that he believes Senators deserve the special treatment and perks they currently enjoy. It is precisely that attitude that makes most Americans roll their eyes in disgust at the hubris of Washington's power elite. That sense of entitlement is at the heart of what alienates most Americans from Washington.
Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), who had not publicly committed to lobbying and ethics reform the way Speaker Pelosi had, deserves credit for pushing for reform and attempting to make this ethics overhaul a bipartisan effort. We hope he will continue to push for reform and schedule additional cloture votes. Senators who voted to kill reform should not be let off the hook.
We also commend those Senators who voted to move forward on reform, including every Democrat along with Republicans Gordon Smith (R-OR) and Norm Coleman (R-MN).
We and other reform supporters will continue to push for stronger ethics rules and lobbying disclosure laws during the 110th Congress.
Below are details on the cloture vote, noting those Senators facing reelection in 2008.
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S.1 Reid Amendment Cloture Vote, Jan. 17, 2007
(Senators up for reelection in 2008 in bold .)
YEAS (51) |
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REPUBLICANS (2) |
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Coleman (MN) |
Smith, G. (OR) |
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DEMOCRATS (47) |
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Akaka (HI) |
Durbin (IL) |
Mikulski (MD) |
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Baucus, M. (MT) |
Feingold (WI) |
Murray (WA) |
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Bayh (IN) |
Feinstein (CA) |
Nelson, Ben (NE) |
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Biden (DE) |
Harkin (IA) |
Nelson, Bill (FL) |
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Bingaman (NM) |
Inouye (HI) |
Obama (IL) |
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Boxer (CA) |
Kennedy, E. (MA) |
Pryor (AR) |
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Brown, S. (OH) |
Kerry (MA) |
Reed, J. (RI) |
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Byrd (WV) |
Klobuchar (MN) |
Rockefeller (WV) |
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Cantwell (WA) |
Kohl (WI) |
Salazar, K. (CO) |
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Cardin (MD) |
Landrieu (LA) |
Schumer (NY) |
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Carper (DE) |
Lautenberg (NJ) |
Stabenow (MI) |
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Casey (PA) |
Leahy (VT) |
Tester (MT) |
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Clinton (NY) |
Levin, C. (MI) |
Webb (VA) |
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Conrad (ND) |
Lincoln (AR) |
Whitehouse (RI) |
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Dodd (CT) |
McCaskill (MO) |
Wyden (OR) |
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Dorgan (ND) |
Menendez (NJ) |
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INDEPENDENTS (2) |
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Lieberman (CT) |
Sanders (VT) |
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NAYS (46) |
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REPUBLICANS (45) |
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Alexander, L. (TN) |
Dole (NC) |
McCain (AZ) |
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Allard (CO) |
Domenici (NM) |
McConnell (KY) |
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Bennett (UT) |
Ensign (NV) |
Murkowski (AK) |
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Brownback (KS) |
Enzi (WY) |
Roberts (KS) |
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Bunning (KY) |
Graham (SC) |
Sessions, J. (AL) |
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Burr (NC) |
Grassley (IA) |
Shelby (AL) |
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Chambliss (GA) |
Gregg (NH) |
Snowe (ME) |
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Coburn (OK) |
Hatch (UT) |
Specter (PA) |
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Cochran (MS) |
Hutchison (TX) |
Stevens (AK) |
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Collins (ME) |
Inhofe (OK) |
Sununu (NH) |
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Corker (TN) |
Isakson (GA) |
Thomas (WY) |
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Cornyn (TX) |
Kyl (AZ) |
Thune (SD) |
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Craig (ID) |
Lott (MS) |
Vitter (LA) |
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Crapo (ID) |
Lugar (IN) |
Voinovich (OH) |
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DeMint (SC) |
Martinez (FL) |
Warner (VA) |
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DEMOCRATS (1) |
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Reid, H. (NV) |
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INDEPENDENTS (0) |
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NOT VOTING (3) |
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REPUBLICANS (2) |
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Bond (MO) |
Hagel (NE) |
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DEMOCRATS (1) |
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Johnson, Tim (SD) |
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INDEPENDENTS (0) |
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