George Miller: “I say to the Members of the House it is time now for some candor about the meeting you had with Rupert Murdoch and its…”

“I say to the Members of the House it is time now for some candor about the meeting you had with Rupert Murdoch and its relationship to your book deal. The Congress of which you said you were the Speaker of the entire Congress, not just of the Republicans, deserves some answers about what took place at that meeting and what you knew about the progression of your negotiations with Rupert Murdoch's company for your book contract. I think it also raises a question about whether or not public officials ought to be allowed to engage in contracts for private gain while they are doing the public's business. To suggest that this meeting was only a courtesy visit or one of 30 visits that took place during that day is to mislead the public. The oldest game in this town is to have a lobbyist, a lawyer, or a special interest do you a favor and then a couple of days later ask one of their representatives that they might arrange a courtesy visit to come by. What they are doing in that visit is not courtesy; what they are doing is cementing the relation between the favor that was previously done and suggestions of actions or business that they have before the Congress that they want you to be aware of. We ought to know for the record what the facts were.”