John Hope Bryant: “Are you not reading the papers? Are you not aware that high-ranking Members of Congress of both parties are presently…”

“Are you not reading the papers? Are you not aware that high-ranking Members of Congress of both parties are presently under investigation? Is there some indication otherwise? Have you not read the law? I will not yield again. Have you not read the law that says clearly Members of Congress are covered? It is optional, but what the gentleman wants to do is to make it mandatory. They continue this rhetoric that somehow we are not treated like all other Americans. The independent counsel statute was written for 60 people who have become such good friends with the Attorney General that we cannot rely on human beings who serve as Attorney General to investigate objectively or to prosecute. Only 60. Everybody else is treated the same. The public integrity unit, the drug unit, every other unit out there is out and available to the prosecutors to investigate us, just like the general public. That is the way it ought to be. I will be back in a moment with an amendment to the Gekas amendment that I think gives every Member an opportunity to vote on the principle that Members ought to be covered, but the coverage ought to be at the discretion of the Attorney General.”