Watching some of the news coming from Capitol Hill last week, two old music videos started buzzing around in our heads. One was the classic “I’m Just a Bill,” from Schoolhouse Rock, in which a beleaguered piece of legislation sits outside on the marble steps hoping to someday become a law. The other was that Paula Abdul “Opposites Attract” number from 1989 with the sleazy cartoon cat and the chorus that starts, “I take two steps forward, I take two steps back.”
Rep. Jerry Lewis working in his Washington office. Lewis, who has represented a Southern California district in Congress for more than 30 years, will not seek reelection in 2012. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Six long, weary years after New York Rep. Louise Slaughter first proposed a law to ban insider trading by members of Congress and their staffs, the Senate overwhelmingly approved the House version of the STOCK (Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge) Act and sent it down Pennsylvania Avenue for President Obama’s signature (the legislation covers the executive branch as well). The vote was 96-3.
All it ultimately took for passage were the magic words, “60 Minutesis here to see you.” You’ll remember the blistering report by the CBS News magazine showlast November implicating several members in questionable financial transactions based on private information. That’s what finally lit a fire under an already deeply unpopular Congress.
“This has been a long and turbulent debate, but one we needed to have to serve our constituents.” Rep. Slaughter said. “It is a fight I’m proud to have waged.” President Obama noted, “It’s a good first step. And in the months ahead, Congress should do even more to help fight the destructive influence of money in politics and rebuild the trust between Washington and the American people.”
But here’s the first step back. The STOCK Act lacks two key amendments that were in anearlier, tougher Senate version. One, proposed by Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa, would have attempted to rein in the burgeoning “political intelligence” industry in D.C. As described by the congressional newspaper The Hill:
“Grassley’s language would have dramatically expanded the disclosure of lobbying activities by requiring specialists who glean valuable information from Capitol Hill to register and report their activities after making even one contact to gather political intelligence. Hedge funds and other money managers pay top dollar for the information, which can be used to make lucrative trades.”
