Dec. 15 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. Senators John McCain and Russell Feingold, who led the drive to ban unlimited corporate and union donations to political parties, will make the first bipartisan effort in a decade to strengthen lobbying laws. Their legislation comes as a scandal threatens to ensnare some colleagues.
The lawmakers will introduce a measure as early as today that would require lobbyists to disclose through quarterly electronic reports all the contributions they make, the fund- raisers they arrange and the amount they spend on behalf of candidates and political parties, according to a person who has seen a draft. The legislation would require disclosure of all grass-roots activities and double to two years the waiting period before a lawmaker-turned-lobbyist could lobby a former colleague.
McCain, an Arizona Republican, said he was spurred to act after hearings by his Indian Affairs Committee showed that lobbyist Jack Abramoff and his partner, Michael Scanlon, had charged Indian clients more than $80 million and directed the tribes to donate money to politicians and pet projects.
``It's obvious why it's needed,'' McCain told reporters at the Capitol yesterday. ``One word: Abramoff.''
No comments:
Post a Comment