Surprise, Surprise: Ethics Reforms Falter In Congress

In a way, it’s a non-story since you could see this one coming:

Prospects for robust ethics reform in the 109th Congress are dimming, even as the criminal probes that prompted it are intensifying.

It’s a political calculation that could cost lawmakers in this fall’s elections, if they misread the degree to which voters care about bribery inside the Beltway.

Yes, let’s hope so. A few months ago members of both parties virtually wrapped themselves in the American flag as they vowed to clean up Congress. But as time went on and the immediacy of outrage over some breaking stories involving “influence pedding” (which is to bribery what “pre-owned cars” are to “used cars”) waned, the politicos have apparently concluded that they can get away with doing only a perfunctory reform or two but basically do nothing. The Christian Science Monitor piece also notes:

As recently as January, lobby reform bills were top priorities in both the House and Senate, but now are encountering strong resistance. In the Senate, Republican leaders pulled the lobby bill off the floor over an unrelated amendment on the Dubai ports deal. In the House, GOP leaders are split over how aggressively to restrict lawmaker travel paid for by private entities.

“Some members are pulling the blanket over their heads and hoping the storm will pass. For others, there is also a genuine belief that if you just jump in a spasm of reaction, you could do some things detrimental to a good deliberative process,” says Norman Ornstein, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.

Hopefully voters will be able to discern which candidates fall into what categories (including some not listed here) and cast their votes accordingly on Election Day.