Pelosi seeks tougher oversight on ethics

[cal04]

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called for tighter ethics rules in federal agencies Wednesday after government officials approved the purchase of a $980,000 vacation home by a top Justice Department lawyer with an oil company lobbyist.

Pelosi's criticism followed an Associated Press report last week that department ethics officials did not object when Sue Ellen Wooldridge, then head of the environment division, was buying a South Carolina beach house with Donald R. Duncan, the top Washington lobbyist for ConocoPhillips.

"If in fact Ms. Wooldridge got such a pass from the ethics committee of the executive branch, then certainly the executive branch ethics process needs a look as well," Pelosi, D-Calif., said when asked about the house purchase at a San Francisco news conference.

Nine months after the purchase, Wooldridge approved an agreement that allowed Conoco Phillips an extension of pollution cleanup requirements at some of the company's refineries. The company says Duncan was not part of those negotiations.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070222/ap_on_go_co/prosecutor_lobbyist_3

[Ignacio Upton]

1. First she needs to explain why she appointed William Jefferson

to the Homeland Security Committee.

http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2007/02/frozen_cash_plu.html

[w4rma]

4. She prevented him from chairing any committees. (nt)

[Ignacio Upton]

6. Didn't she strip him of his overall committee assignments last May?

Why couldn't she continue to do that until we find out whether or not he gets indicted?

[Wilms]

2. We sure need tougher oversight given the pass given to AIPAC.

What's up with that, Nancy?

[boobooday]

3. Hey, trading pollution privileges for a million $$ vacation home?

Maybe they should make it a time share for all the poisoned people so they could get break. I'm sure it's not near a superfund site or anything.

[geiger]

5. totally fucking waste of time; move on to real issues if u cant even enforce the rules u already hav

[sam sarrha]

7. How about some Oversight on the wounded Vets VA REVIEW BOARD !!!..Link>

http://www.vetsforjustice.com/ scroll down to 'Rico act conspiract...' there is another about review board arbitrarily denies benefits, you are not going to get anything..

and go to http://www.whiterosesociety.com and click on randi rhodes then 2-20-07

this is the real SCANDAL not the roaches that is a cover up

[Larry Ogg]

8. Government officials getting paid off, and finally someone’s going to call for tighter ethics rules.

Gee…, what a good idea! And I was thinking more along the lines of harsher penalties for criminals that have weaseled there way into public office. But then what the hell do I know? Seeing some appointee or elected official getting a government approved corporate paid bonus for not doing there job, is after all politics as usual for those above the law.