Tuesday
Feb172009
Obama Administration’s ethics are the topic of debate
By Kayleigh Harvey - Talk Radio News Service
President and CEO of Democracy 21, Fred Wertheimer gave a talk today at the Washington Foreign Media Center to discuss "Ethics in the Obama Administration - Are Washington' Rules Changing?"
According to Democracy 21, they are a non-profit and nonpartisan organization which aims to provide the public with information on campaigns and campaign financing. Democracy 21 wants to ensure campaign financing laws are adhered to and modernized.
Talking specifically about Obama, Wertheimer commented on how the
President had been a a key figure while in the Senate by fighting for ethical reform.
Wertheimer said: “We have a new President who comes from a different culture in terms of his own career with a long track record on government integrity reform issues. In the state where he comes from there are two strands of politicians. There is one strand that creates the scandals, of which have led to four governors being indicted and many other problems. There is another reform strand, that goes back to Senator John Douglas...and now Senator Obama.”
President Obama has a long track record on these issues. It did not start on his first day of office,” Wertheimer added.
However, Wertheimer noted that recent set-backs in Obama’s new administration may have led critics to question the President’s performance on ethic related matters.
Speaking specifically about the Daschle nomination withdrawl, Wertheimer said: “Senator Daschle from my personal experience’s of dealing with him, was a terrific public servant for many years in the Congress and I had during the time I worked with him the highest regard for him. He kind of, was a product of the rules of Washington. This kind of Washington culture, he fell into like others have, and he got caught up in this clash, between what has been a normal Washington culture, which Washington accepts, and a set of circumstances created by Obama’s campaign which led to expectations of a change in this culture. He got caught in the middle of that.”
Wertheimer said: “It is an interesting question, whether Washington can change. What we are seeing here is a potential clash between a culture that has developed in recent decades, in Washington, which is a lobbyist special interest, money and politics culture.”
Campaign 21 is a supporter of the Executive Reform legislation that prohibits former serving members from becoming lobbyist after serving their term. The legislation also tackles, what Wertheimer described as the “reverse revolving door” scenario where lobbyist enter the Executive Branch.
President and CEO of Democracy 21, Fred Wertheimer gave a talk today at the Washington Foreign Media Center to discuss "Ethics in the Obama Administration - Are Washington' Rules Changing?"
According to Democracy 21, they are a non-profit and nonpartisan organization which aims to provide the public with information on campaigns and campaign financing. Democracy 21 wants to ensure campaign financing laws are adhered to and modernized.
Talking specifically about Obama, Wertheimer commented on how the
President had been a a key figure while in the Senate by fighting for ethical reform.
Wertheimer said: “We have a new President who comes from a different culture in terms of his own career with a long track record on government integrity reform issues. In the state where he comes from there are two strands of politicians. There is one strand that creates the scandals, of which have led to four governors being indicted and many other problems. There is another reform strand, that goes back to Senator John Douglas...and now Senator Obama.”
President Obama has a long track record on these issues. It did not start on his first day of office,” Wertheimer added.
However, Wertheimer noted that recent set-backs in Obama’s new administration may have led critics to question the President’s performance on ethic related matters.
Speaking specifically about the Daschle nomination withdrawl, Wertheimer said: “Senator Daschle from my personal experience’s of dealing with him, was a terrific public servant for many years in the Congress and I had during the time I worked with him the highest regard for him. He kind of, was a product of the rules of Washington. This kind of Washington culture, he fell into like others have, and he got caught up in this clash, between what has been a normal Washington culture, which Washington accepts, and a set of circumstances created by Obama’s campaign which led to expectations of a change in this culture. He got caught in the middle of that.”
Wertheimer said: “It is an interesting question, whether Washington can change. What we are seeing here is a potential clash between a culture that has developed in recent decades, in Washington, which is a lobbyist special interest, money and politics culture.”
Campaign 21 is a supporter of the Executive Reform legislation that prohibits former serving members from becoming lobbyist after serving their term. The legislation also tackles, what Wertheimer described as the “reverse revolving door” scenario where lobbyist enter the Executive Branch.
tagged 
Culture, administration, barack, ceo, democrcy 21, ethics, fred, obama, president, reform, washington, wertheimer in News/Commentary
Culture, administration, barack, ceo, democrcy 21, ethics, fred, obama, president, reform, washington, wertheimer in News/Commentary
Reaction On Capitol Hill To Rangel Charges Mixed
By Alexa Gitler - Talk Radio News Service
Even after the House Ethics Committee charged Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-N.Y.) with over a dozen rules violations, the embattled former Ways and Means Chair continued to voice his innocence.
“Even though they are serious charges, I’m prepared to prove that the only thing I’ve ever had in my 50 years of public service is service,” Rangel told reporters Thursday night.
Today on Capitol Hill, however, Rangel received mixed reviews from folks.
“As important as Rangel is to the Democrats and for someone who has served so long, he has deeply disappointed the people who voted for him and it has put serious distrust in the Democratic Party, said James Davis, a resident of Walhalla, South Carolina.”
Several Democrats, even leaders like House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), urged Rangel to reach a settlement with the committee to avoid the prospect of televised hearings right before the November elections. Byron, Illinois resident Susanne Smith told Talk Radio News Service that she believes Rangel’s trial will hurt the Democrats in the midterms.
“I don’t think people will really remember the outcome of this trial but it will definitely shed a lot of negative light on the Democratic Party,” she said.
Despite the laundry list of charges, some don’t believe Rangel, 80, is guilty. Mark Davidson from Germantown, Maryland said people should not rush to judgments over Rangel.
“Those are just allegations, nothing is set in stone,” he said. “In our country everyone is innocent until they are proven guilty with cold hard evidence, and people should remember that!”
Others out there think putting Rangel on trial is a waste of taxpayer time and money.
“Yes this is important, but there are many other things going on in the world - the wars overseas, problems with our economy - that are much more important than this that our government should really be focusing on,” said Eric Cho of Gaithersburg, Maryland.