Political Quotes

“the amendment of the Senator from Oklahoma and the Senator from Arizona is acceptable to me. It will strengthen the postemployment rules that are applicable to senior executive branch officials, Members of Congress, and congressional staff. These postemployment laws are designed to serve two purposes: First, they impose a cooling off period in order to eliminate the fact or appearance of favoritism in the former official lobbying his or her former office. Second, they prevent a former official from financially benefiting from the use of confidential information obtained while working for the Federal Government. The overall goal is to have the highest ethical standards for Federal employees without curtailing an individual's rights to free association and petitioning the Government and also to protect the taxpayers' interests in obtaining the best and brightest public servants. That requires a balancing of interests. I, like my good friends from Oklahoma and Arizona, have been deeply troubled by the reports of abuses of the so-called revolving door by former Government employees. We all know the stories and I share their concerns, that our current postemployment laws are porous.”