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03/21/2006
CWA Urges
Congress to Remove Grassroots Language from Lobby Reform Legislation WASHINGTON, March 21-- Concerned Women for America (CWA) says that the language that includes grassroots organizations in The Lobbying Transparency and Accountability Act (S. 2128) must be removed immediately. This legislation is meant to put in place stricter regulations in light of the recent K-Street lobbying scandals. Including grassroots in this bill serves only to punish concerned citizens for the corrupt behavior of power-hungry K-Street lobbyists. “Grassroots lobbying is a political instrument that allows the voices of everyday Americans to be heard,” said Lanier Swann, CWA’s Director of Government Relations. “Haphazardly including grassroots in lobby reform is not going to hurt deep- pocketed K-Street lobbyists. It will merely muffle the voices of people who lobby for issues because they actually care about them. Teachers, concerned parents, and the elderly are among those who will pay the price for others’ fraudulent actions. Worse yet, this legislation is unconstitutional because it violates the rights of people to assemble and address Congress with grievances. “The bill is currently stalled in the Senate. They have voted against cloture on the bill, which offers concerned citizens an opportunity to communicate with their senators about this deeply flawed legislation. Constituents need to loudly oppose lawmakers’ efforts to punish grassroots organizations for crimes they never committed. We urge Congress to completely remove the amendment that would place regulations on grassroots lobbying, and instead focus their efforts on fighting political corruption. Members of Congress are in recess this week, which means it is a perfect time for constituents to pick up the phone and let their representatives know they must keep grassroots out of lobby reform.” Concerned Women for America (CWA) is the nation’s largest public policy women’s organization.
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