THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, June 12, 1995 TAG: 9506100008
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A8 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Editorial
LENGTH: Short : 47 lines
One reform issue that continues to come up yearly is the limiting of lobbying - the buying of access to (and favors from?) our government officials. We have seen these exposed on television: the trips to tropical paradises, the gifts to campaign funds, the gifts to an outside fund controlled by the officeholder. You would think that there would be enough honest public officials to pass such a bill, and a president honest enough to sign it; but it hasn't happened yet.
The citizen's lobby Common Cause, of which I am a member, has fought for such controls for years. Paul Wellstone, a Minnesota Democrat, plans to again introduce a bill putting a curb on congressional freebies. This measure will not restrict lobbying; it restricts bribes.
As an example, the American Medical Association paid for a golfing weekend at a West Virginia resort for nine congressional staff members working on health-care reform in 1993. The Wall Street Journal reported the cost at $1,500 a person. If staff members got this, what did their congressional bosses get? Well, among other things, members of Congress got 4,000 air trips from lobbyists.
The cause of governmental reform dodged a bullet recently when the Senate refused to kill the voluntary donation of income-tax funds for presidential campaigns. Opponents said it would be a cost-cutting measure. But surely it makes sense to make certain all presidential candidates have the means to carry their message to the public. We know in Virginia Beach that wealthy people have every advantage in seeking a City Council seat. Let's not allow the election of a president of the United States to become a bidding war. I was sorry to see that Virginia Sen. John Warner voted to kill the presidential funding.
With the push to balance the federal budget, some may see the thousands of dollars in gifts to congressmen as small potatoes. But remember, the votes that result can involve very large potatoes, or they wouldn't be offered the freebies to begin with. Let's see if we can get our people to support the Wellstone bill
EDWARD F. BACON
Virginia Beach, May 31, 1995 by CNB