Senate Approves Bill Denying Pensions to Congressmen Convicted of Ethics Violations

    The Senate finally got a chance to do something right, and they did!

    The legislation passed by a vote of 87-0! Maybe if we get lucky it will be retro-active to some where around 2000.

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Bill strips ethics-challenged legislators of pensions
POSTED: 8:52 p.m. EST, January 12, 2007 at CNN

Sens. John Kerry, D-Massachusetts, and Ken Salazar, D-Colorado, attached the amendment to an ethics reform bill earlier this week.

"The only thing crazier than giving a member of Congress convicted of a crime a federal pension is the fact that we still need a bill to prevent a convict from receiving their pension," Salazar said at the time. "A member of Congress who abuses their position of authority for their personal profit deserves a prison sentence, not a government pension."

   This bill has to pass the House and be signed by President Bush. That's were there may be a problem.

 

Technorati tags: Senate, Congressmen, Ethics

 

Oil Companies Attack Legislation Designed To Cut Back Tax Incentives

    You knew that this one was coming because the last thing that the oil companies want is to have to pay all of the money that the Bush Crime Family has let them slip into their coffers.

   Money such as the $7 billion or so that they have screwed the tax payer out of with their leases  allowing them to pump billions of dollars worth of oil and gas from publicly owned waters without paying royalties to the government.

    Here is the oil companies argument against changing the leases, which are flawed.

    The New York Times

“This bill takes capital from U.S. oil and natural gas companies that otherwise would be spent on domestic energy exploration,” said Barry Russell, president of the Independent Petroleum Association of America, which represents about 5,000 smaller oil and gas producers. “If the goal is to lessen our dependence on foreign oil, then this bill falls far short.”    Entire Article

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   As if the oil companies are seriously looking for alternative sources of energy!