McCain said, "Well, one would think (laugh) that this act was not necessary and we could respect ethics rules we have, ethics committee we have but if it makes people feel better, fine."
However, as reported by CBS News (which attracted a lot of attention to the issue last year on "60 Minutes"), the newly-passed law headed for the President's desk was stripped down by the House (from the version previously passed by McCain and the Senate).
In order to pass both Houses of Congress, the legislation was pared back from its original form. The final bill dropped a provision passed in the Senate last month, which would have given prosecutors new tools to investigate and prosecute criminal conduct by public officials. The final version also left out a provision that would have required those employed in the burgeoning "political intelligence" industry to register with Congress in the same way that lobbyists do. In the political intelligence industry, people with access to insider information sell their knowledge of political developments to Wall Street investors, who then use it to make investment decisions.Link.
The political intelligence provision was stripped in the House after House Majority Leader Eric Cantor said there should be more study of the issues involved. He also said the issue was outside the scope of the bill and wondered if the amendment could have negative consequences.
McCain and Van Susteren also discussed the healthcare insurance reform law headed for the Supreme Court next week.
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