[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 48 (Thursday, March 19, 2009)]
[House]
[Pages H3653-H3654]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           RAISING A QUESTION OF THE PRIVILEGES OF THE HOUSE

  Mr. FLAKE. Mr. Speaker, I rise to a question of the privileges of the 
House and offer the resolution previously noticed.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will report the resolution.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                              H. Res. 265

       Whereas, Mr. Paul Magliocchetti, a former Appropriations 
     Committee staffer, founded a prominent lobbying firm 
     specializing in obtaining defense earmarks for its clients 
     and whose offices--along with the home of the founder--were 
     recently raided by the FBI.
       Whereas, the lobbying firm has shuttered its political 
     action committee and is scheduled to cease operations at the 
     end of the month but, according to the New York Times, ``not 
     before leaving a detailed blueprint of how the political 
     money churn works in Congress'' and amid multiple press 
     reports that its founder is the focus of a Justice Department 
     investigation. (The New York Times, February 20, 2009)
       Whereas, CQ Today noted that the firm has ``charged $107 
     million in lobbying fees from 2000 through 2008'' and 
     estimates of political giving by the raided firm have varied 
     in the press, with The Hill reporting that the firm has given 
     $3.4 million to no less than 284 members of Congress. (CQ 
     Today, March 12, 2009; The Hill, March 4, 2009)
       Whereas, The Hill reported that Mr. Magliocchetti is 
     ``under investigation for [the firm's] campaign donations,'' 
     the Washington Post highlighted the fact that federal 
     investigators are ``focused on allegations'' that he ``may 
     have reimbursed some of his staff to cover contributions made 
     in their names . . .,'' and the New York Times noted that 
     federal prosecutors are ``looking into the possibility'' that 
     he ``may have funneled bogus campaign contributions'' to 
     members of Congress. (The Hill, February 20, 2009; The 
     Washington Post, February 14, 2009; The New York Times, 
     February 11, 2009)
       Whereas, Roll Call reported on ``the suspicious pattern of 
     giving established by two Floridians who joined [the firm's] 
     board of directors in 2006'' and who, with ``no previous 
     political profile . . . made more than $160,000 in campaign 
     contributions over a three-year period'' and ``generally 
     contributed the same amount to the same candidate on the same 
     days.'' (Roll Call, February 20, 2009)
       Whereas, The Hill also reported that ``the embattled 
     defense lobbyist who led the FBI-raided [firm] has entered 
     into a Florida-based business with two associates whose 
     political donations have come into question'' and is listed 
     in corporate records as being an executive with them in a 
     restaurant business. (The Hill, February 17, 2009)
       Whereas, Roll Call also reported that it had located tens 
     of thousands of dollars of donations linked to the firm that 
     ``are improperly reported in the FEC database.'' (Roll Call, 
     February 20, 2009)
       Whereas, CQ Today recently reported that Mr. Magliocchetti 
     and ``nine of his relatives--two children, his daughter-in-
     law, his current wife, his ex-wife and his ex-wife's parents, 
     sister, and brother-in-law'' provided ``$1.5 million in 
     political contributions from 2000 through 2008 as the 
     lobbyist's now-embattled firm helped clients win billions of 
     dollars in federal contracts,'' with the majority of the 
     family members contributing in excess of $100,000 in that 
     timeframe. (CQ Today, March 12, 2009)
       Whereas, CQ Today also noted that ``all but one of the 
     family members were recorded as working for [the firm] in 
     campaign finance reports, and most also were listed as having 
     other employers'' and with other occupations such as 
     assistant ticket director for a Class A baseball team, a 
     school teacher, a police sergeant, and a homemaker. (CQ 
     Today, March 12, 2009)
       Whereas, in addition to reports of allegations related to 
     reimbursing employees and the concerning patterns of 
     contributions of business associates and board members, ABC 
     News reported that some former clients of the firm ``have 
     complained of being pressured by [the firm's] lobbyists to 
     write checks for politicians they either had no interest in 
     or openly opposed.'' (ABC News The Blotter, March 4, 2009)
       Whereas, Roll Call has taken note of the timing of 
     contributions from employees of Mr. Magliocchetti's firm and 
     its clients when it reported that they ``have provided 
     thousands of dollars worth of campaign contributions to key 
     Members in close proximity to legislative activity, such as 
     the deadline for earmark request letters or passage of a 
     spending bill.'' (Roll Call, March 3, 2009)
       Whereas, reports of the firm's success in obtaining 
     earmarks for their clients are widespread, with CQ Today 
     reporting that ``104 House members got earmarks for projects 
     sought by [clients of the firm] in the 2008 defense 
     appropriations bills,'' and that 87 percent of this 
     bipartisan group of Members received campaign contributions 
     from the raided firm. (CQ Today, February 19, 2009)
       Whereas, clients of Mr. Magliocchetti's firm received at 
     least three hundred million dollars worth of earmarks in 
     fiscal year 2009 appropriations legislation, including 
     several that were approved even after news of the FBI raid 
     and Justice Department investigation into the firm and its 
     founder was well known.

[[Page H3654]]

       Whereas, the Chicago Tribune noted that the ties between a 
     senior House Appropriations Committee member and Mr. 
     Magliocchetti's firm ``reflect a culture of pay-to-play in 
     Washington.'' and ABC News indicated that ``the firm's 
     operations--millions out to lawmakers, hundreds of millions 
     back in earmarks for clients--have made it, for many 
     observers, the poster child for tacit ``pay-to-play'' 
     politics . . .'' (Chicago Tribune, March 2, 2009; ABC News 
     The Blotter, March 4, 2009)
       Whereas Roll Call has reported that ``a handful of 
     lawmakers had already begun to refund donations tied to'' the 
     firm ``at the center of a federal probe . . .'' (Roll Call, 
     February 23, 2009)
       Whereas, the persistent media attention focused on 
     questions about the nature and timing of campaign 
     contributions related to Mr. Magliocchetti, as well as 
     reports of the Justice Department conducting research on 
     earmarks and campaign contributions, raise concern about the 
     integrity of Congressional proceedings and the dignity of the 
     institution.
       Whereas, the fact that cases are being investigated by the 
     Justice Department does not preclude the Committee on 
     Standards from taking investigative steps: Now, therefore, be 
     it
       Resolved, That
       (a) The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, or a 
     subcommittee of the committee designated by the committee and 
     its members appointed by the chairman and ranking member, 
     shall immediately begin an investigation into the 
     relationship between the source and timing of past campaign 
     contributions to Members of the House related to the founder 
     of the raided firm and earmark requests made by Members of 
     the House on behalf of clients of the raided firm.
       (b) The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall 
     submit a report of its findings to the House of 
     Representatives within 2 months after the date of adoption of 
     the resolution.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The resolution qualifies.


                            Motion to Table

  Mr. BECERRA. Mr. Speaker, I move to lay the resolution on the table.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion.
  The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that 
the ayes appeared to have it.
  Mr. FLAKE. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a 
quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not 
present.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Evidently a quorum is not present.
  The Sergeant at Arms will notify absent Members.
  Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, this 15-minute vote on the motion to 
table will be followed by 5-minute votes on ordering the previous 
question on H. Res. 257, and adopting H. Res. 257, if ordered.
  The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--yeas 226, 
nays 180, answered ``present'' 15, not voting 10, as follows:

                             [Roll No. 141]

                               YEAS--226

     Abercrombie
     Ackerman
     Adler (NJ)
     Altmire
     Andrews
     Arcuri
     Baca
     Baird
     Baldwin
     Barrow
     Becerra
     Berkley
     Berman
     Berry
     Bishop (GA)
     Bishop (NY)
     Blumenauer
     Boren
     Boswell
     Boucher
     Boyd
     Brady (PA)
     Braley (IA)
     Brown, Corrine
     Capps
     Capuano
     Cardoza
     Carnahan
     Carney
     Carson (IN)
     Childers
     Clarke
     Clay
     Cleaver
     Clyburn
     Cohen
     Connolly (VA)
     Conyers
     Cooper
     Costa
     Costello
     Courtney
     Crowley
     Cuellar
     Cummings
     Dahlkemper
     Davis (AL)
     Davis (CA)
     Davis (IL)
     Davis (TN)
     DeFazio
     DeGette
     DeLauro
     Dicks
     Dingell
     Doggett
     Doyle
     Driehaus
     Edwards (MD)
     Edwards (TX)
     Ellison
     Engel
     Eshoo
     Etheridge
     Farr
     Fattah
     Filner
     Frank (MA)
     Fudge
     Gonzalez
     Gordon (TN)
     Grayson
     Green, Al
     Green, Gene
     Griffith
     Grijalva
     Gutierrez
     Hall (NY)
     Hare
     Harman
     Hastings (FL)
     Heinrich
     Herseth Sandlin
     Higgins
     Hinojosa
     Hirono
     Holden
     Holt
     Honda
     Hoyer
     Inslee
     Israel
     Jackson (IL)
     Jackson-Lee (TX)
     Johnson (GA)
     Johnson, E. B.
     Jones
     Kagen
     Kanjorski
     Kaptur
     Kennedy
     Kildee
     Kilpatrick (MI)
     Kilroy
     Kissell
     Klein (FL)
     Kratovil
     Kucinich
     Langevin
     Larsen (WA)
     Larson (CT)
     Lee (CA)
     Levin
     Lewis (GA)
     Lipinski
     Lowey
     Lujan
     Lynch
     Maffei
     Maloney
     Markey (CO)
     Markey (MA)
     Marshall
     Massa
     Matheson
     Matsui
     McCarthy (NY)
     McCollum
     McDermott
     McGovern
     McMahon
     Meek (FL)
     Meeks (NY)
     Melancon
     Michaud
     Miller (NC)
     Miller, George
     Mollohan
     Moore (KS)
     Moore (WI)
     Moran (VA)
     Murphy (CT)
     Murphy, Patrick
     Murphy, Tim
     Murtha
     Nadler (NY)
     Neal (MA)
     Nye
     Oberstar
     Obey
     Olver
     Ortiz
     Pallone
     Pascrell
     Pastor (AZ)
     Payne
     Perlmutter
     Peters
     Peterson
     Pingree (ME)
     Polis (CO)
     Pomeroy
     Price (NC)
     Rahall
     Rangel
     Reyes
     Richardson
     Rodriguez
     Rohrabacher
     Ross
     Rothman (NJ)
     Roybal-Allard
     Ruppersberger
     Rush
     Ryan (OH)
     Salazar
     Sanchez, Linda T.
     Sanchez, Loretta
     Sarbanes
     Schakowsky
     Schauer
     Schiff
     Schrader
     Schwartz
     Scott (GA)
     Scott (VA)
     Serrano
     Sestak
     Shea-Porter
     Sherman
     Shuler
     Sires
     Skelton
     Slaughter
     Smith (WA)
     Snyder
     Space
     Speier
     Spratt
     Stark
     Stupak
     Sutton
     Tanner
     Tauscher
     Taylor
     Thompson (CA)
     Thompson (MS)
     Tierney
     Titus
     Tonko
     Towns
     Tsongas
     Van Hollen
     Velazquez
     Wasserman Schultz
     Waters
     Watson
     Watt
     Waxman
     Weiner
     Wexler
     Wilson (OH)
     Woolsey
     Wu
     Yarmuth
     Young (AK)

                               NAYS--180

     Aderholt
     Akin
     Alexander
     Austria
     Bachmann
     Bachus
     Bartlett
     Barton (TX)
     Bean
     Biggert
     Bilbray
     Bilirakis
     Bishop (UT)
     Blackburn
     Blunt
     Boccieri
     Boehner
     Bono Mack
     Boozman
     Brady (TX)
     Bright
     Broun (GA)
     Brown (SC)
     Brown-Waite, Ginny
     Buchanan
     Burgess
     Burton (IN)
     Buyer
     Calvert
     Camp
     Campbell
     Cantor
     Cao
     Capito
     Carter
     Cassidy
     Castle
     Chaffetz
     Coble
     Coffman (CO)
     Cole
     Crenshaw
     Davis (KY)
     Deal (GA)
     Diaz-Balart, M.
     Donnelly (IN)
     Dreier
     Duncan
     Ehlers
     Ellsworth
     Emerson
     Fallin
     Flake
     Fleming
     Forbes
     Fortenberry
     Foster
     Foxx
     Franks (AZ)
     Frelinghuysen
     Gallegly
     Garrett (NJ)
     Gerlach
     Giffords
     Gingrey (GA)
     Gohmert
     Goodlatte
     Granger
     Graves
     Guthrie
     Hall (TX)
     Halvorson
     Harper
     Heller
     Hensarling
     Herger
     Himes
     Hodes
     Hoekstra
     Hunter
     Inglis
     Issa
     Jenkins
     Johnson (IL)
     Johnson, Sam
     Jordan (OH)
     Kind
     King (IA)
     King (NY)
     Kingston
     Kirk
     Kirkpatrick (AZ)
     Kosmas
     Lamborn
     Lance
     Latham
     LaTourette
     Latta
     Lee (NY)
     Lewis (CA)
     Linder
     LoBiondo
     Loebsack
     Lucas
     Luetkemeyer
     Lummis
     Lungren, Daniel E.
     Mack
     Manzullo
     Marchant
     McCarthy (CA)
     McCaul
     McClintock
     McCotter
     McHenry
     McHugh
     McIntyre
     McKeon
     McMorris Rodgers
     McNerney
     Mica
     Miller (FL)
     Miller (MI)
     Minnick
     Mitchell
     Moran (KS)
     Myrick
     Neugebauer
     Nunes
     Paul
     Paulsen
     Pence
     Perriello
     Petri
     Pitts
     Platts
     Posey
     Price (GA)
     Putnam
     Rehberg
     Reichert
     Roe (TN)
     Rogers (AL)
     Rogers (KY)
     Rogers (MI)
     Rooney
     Ros-Lehtinen
     Roskam
     Royce
     Ryan (WI)
     Scalise
     Schmidt
     Schock
     Sensenbrenner
     Sessions
     Shadegg
     Shimkus
     Simpson
     Smith (NE)
     Smith (NJ)
     Smith (TX)
     Stearns
     Sullivan
     Teague
     Terry
     Thompson (PA)
     Thornberry
     Tiahrt
     Tiberi
     Turner
     Upton
     Visclosky
     Walz
     Wamp
     Westmoreland
     Whitfield
     Wilson (SC)
     Wittman
     Wolf
     Young (FL)

                        ANSWERED ``PRESENT''--15

     Barrett (SC)
     Bonner
     Butterfield
     Castor (FL)
     Chandler
     Conaway
     Dent
     Diaz-Balart, L.
     Hastings (WA)
     Hill
     Kline (MN)
     Lofgren, Zoe
     Poe (TX)
     Walden
     Welch

                             NOT VOTING--10

     Boustany
     Culberson
     Delahunt
     Hinchey
     Miller, Gary
     Napolitano
     Olson
     Radanovich
     Shuster
     Souder

                              {time}  1157

  Messrs. CALVERT and TEAGUE changed their vote from ``yea'' to 
``nay.''
  Messrs. CONYERS, CLEAVER, ENGEL, SMITH of Washington and Ms. WATSON 
changed their vote from ``nay'' to ``yea.''
  Messrs. BARRETT of South Carolina, LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART of Florida, 
and WALDEN changed their vote from ``nay'' to ``present.''
  Mr. BUTTERFIELD changed his vote from ``yea'' to ``present.''
  So the motion was agreed to.
  The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
  Stated for:
  Mrs. NAPOLITANO. Madam Speaker, on Thursday, March 19, 2009, I was 
absent during rollcall vote No. 141 in order to attend an event with 
the President in my district. Had I been present, I would have voted 
``yea'' on the motion to table H. Res. 265--Raising a question of 
privileges of the House.

                          ____________________