“The President’s Remarks Will Not Be Complete Unless He Confronts This Serious Issue”
Washington, DC-Rep. Louise M. Slaughter (D-NY-28), Ranking Member of the House Rules Committee and spokesperson for the Democratic Caucus and Ethics Reform released the following statement:
“During next week’s State of the Union Address, President Bush will have the opportunity to speak directly to the American people and finally acknowledge Washington’s pervasive culture of corruption and the high cost of that corruption for the American people. Simply put, the President’s remarks will not be complete unless he finally confronts the issue of ethics reform and addresses the egregious abuses of power by the Republican Majority in the United States Congress, and the rampant cronyism and corruption which has taken hold in his own administration.
Republicans Members of both the House and Senate have repeatedly put America up for sale to the highest bidder and served the special interests of K Street lobbyists at the expense of the American people. These same Republicans successfully fought to weaken ethics rules in Congress last year, rendering the Ethics Committee impotent and America is now faced various law enforcement investigations into illegal and unethical activity at the highest levels of our government.
The scope and cost of this extensive corruption is one of the most important issues impacting the state of our union, and should be directly addressed by President Bush.”