WASHINGTON — Congress on Thursday sent President Bush a bill aimed at reining in the influence of special interests, completing a long-debated overhaul of ethics and lobbying rules spurred by scandals that rocked Capitol Hill.
The measure grew out of a pledge by Democrats to "drain the swamp" after they won majorities in both congressional chambers in last fall's elections. It passed the Senate, 83-14, after clearing the House, 411-8, earlier this week.
The legislation would ban lobbyist-paid gifts, limit privately funded travel and double to two years the "cooling off" period that senators must wait after leaving Capitol Hill before they can lobby their former colleagues. For ex-House members, the waiting period remains one year.
The measure would require senators to pay the full charter rate to fly on corporate jets; the House decided to ban its members from traveling in such fashion. And it would require the disclosure of campaign contributions gathered by lobbyists from clients, friends and others, a practice known as "bundling" that has been used to curry favor with lawmakers.
"Regardless of how reforms might inconvenience us or impact our personal lifestyles, our priority must be to convince our constituents that we are here to advocate their best interests, not those of well-connected lobbyists," said Sen. Russell D. Feingold (D-Wis.), one of the bill's leading advocates.
The most heated debate over the legislation concerned rules to shine a light on earmarking -- the controversial practice popular with lawmakers from both parties through which funding for pet projects has been quietly slipped into bills. The new ethics package would require public disclosure of the project and its sponsor; in the past, earmarks often were anonymously added to legislation with no public notice.
The practice played a role in scandals involving ex-lobbyist Jack Abramoff and former Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham (R-Rancho Santa Fe), both of whom are serving prison terms.
In the Senate vote, all the lawmakers opposing the measure were Republicans, including John McCain of Arizona. Among the six senators running for president in their parties, McCain was the only one to vote against the bill.
He has long railed against "pork-barrel spending," and he argued that the bill did not go far enough to ensure earmarks would be carefully scrutinized. "This bill does far too little to rein in wasteful spending," he said.
