Ethics Truce Frays in House
Democrats Torn Over Investigating GOP
By Charles Babington and Dan Morgan
Washington Post Staff Writers
Wednesday, March 17, 2004; Page A01
A seven-year ethics truce between congressional Republicans and Democrats has begun to fray under the weight of mounting alleged abuses by House GOP leaders and tensions among Democrats over how aggressively to pursue the matters.
Some Democrats and outside groups think the reported wrongdoings have reached a critical mass that cries out for investigations and reforms. Democratic leaders, however, are wary of breaking the long cease-fire that has protected both parties from the types of ethics charges and countercharges that roiled Congress and toppled two speakers in the 1980s and '90s.
The recent allegations touch top lawmakers, including House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Tex.), Majority Whip Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) and several committee chairmen. They involve suggestions of bribery and threats on the House floor, illegal use of campaign funds, misuse of a federal agency for political purposes, conflicts of interest, and strong-arm tactics against lobbyists and campaign contributors. "Rather than change the regime and create a rigorous ethics system as promised, Republicans over the last 10 years have eviscerated the ethics process," said Tom Fitton, president of one of the groups, the conservative Judicial Watch.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A64604-2004Mar16.html