George Miller: “the clouds of scandal once again are gathering above the House of Representatives. The Wall Street Journal has been…”

“the clouds of scandal once again are gathering above the House of Representatives. The Wall Street Journal has been running daily accounts of the special favors that the contributors of GOPAC and the contributors to the Progress and Freedom Foundation that are controlled by the Speaker have sought and received. According to the Wall Street Journal, 10 percent of the contributors to the Progress and Freedom Foundation are makers of drugs and medical devices, whom we now learn are the same people who have sought special legislation and are now seeking to gut the Food and Drug Administration. What we as Members of the House are witnessing is very strong suggestion that the House of Representatives is somehow for sale. This cannot be allowed to stand. We as Members deserve better, and the people of this Nation deserve better. It is imperative that the House Committee on Ethics and its chair, the gentlewoman from Connecticut, Nancy Johnson, move to appoint outside counsel. Given the ramifications of these stories and the fact that GOPAC and the Progress and Freedom Foundation are controlled by the Speaker, the committee has no other choice. It owes it to the people of this Nation to do so, and I urge my colleagues to call upon the gentlewoman from Connecticut [Mrs. Johnson] to appoint outside counsel.”