So Dems will nix ALL gifts , while the Thugs nix "some" gifts

[deminks]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060117/ap_on_go_co/congress_ethics

(snip)

House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi said that "for more than a decade, Speaker Hastert and House Republicans have benefited from their systemic culture of corruption at the expense of the American people. Today, the Republicans' so-called lobbying reform proposal sticks a Band-Aid on a gaping wound."

The staffs in the offices of Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid of Nevada and Democratic Whip Richard Durbin of Illinois have already been told that they should set an example and immediately stop accepting all gifts, meals or travel from lobbyists.

Hastert also said that, after an hour-and-a-half conference call with House Republicans on Tuesday, that he did not have unanimity on changes to lobbying rules, in particular the proposal to ban all privately funded travel.

Hastert and Dreier said their gift ban would be "significantly stronger" but would not prevent members from accepting a baseball hat or a T-shirt from visiting middle-school students.