Political Quotes

“about a year ago this body went on record overwhelmingly--I think it was a vote of 98 to 1--as follows: It is the sense of the Senate that as soon as possible during this year's session the Senate should limit the acceptance of gifts, meals and travel by Members and staff in a manner substantially similar to the restrictions applicable to executive branch officials. Every one of us but one voted to adopt rules that are substantially similar to the restrictions applicable to executive branch officials. Those rules applicable to those officials, Cabinet officers, staff, all are covered by basically a $20 rule for gifts. The reason they were established is that the President decided that we can no longer do business as usual in Washington; that when lobbyists take us out to dinner, when lobbyists give us tickets to the Redskins games, and when we go on these so-called charitable golf outings, which we see all the time on television, where people, Members of Congress, go a couple days playing golf or tennis, half the money maybe ends up going to charity and the other half ends up going to pay for recreation for Members of Congress, that undermines confidence in Congress and in the Government. Ninety-eight of us said almost exactly a year ago that we want to do something about that. And a little longer than a year ago the President said that we have to do something about that and adopted executive branch rules.”