James Comer: “I urge all Members, on a bipartisan basis, to support this amendment. When reviewing H.R. 1 as introduced this Congress…”

“I urge all Members, on a bipartisan basis, to support this amendment. When reviewing H.R. 1 as introduced this Congress, I noticed it was missing several ethics provisions that were included in the bill last Congress when Donald Trump was President. But now that Joe Biden is President, those ethics provisions conveniently disappeared. What was missing from this updated version of H.R. 1 were the following provisions: Requirements that Presidential transition teams disclose a list of all positions each transition team member held outside the Federal Government for the previous 12-month period, including paid and unpaid positions. Requirements that Presidential transition teams disclose sources of compensation for each transition team member exceeding $5,000 a year for the previous 12-month period. And a requirement that the head of the Federal department or agency, or their designee, shall not permit access to the Federal department or agency, or employees of such department or agency, that would not be provided to a member of the public for any transition team member who does not make the required prior employment and conflicts of interest disclosures. It is clear the absence of these provisions was pure politics, but my amendment adds those provisions back since what is good for a Republican President is good for a Democrat President or his or her administration. Ethical principles are supposed to be universal. They are supposed to apply equally.…”