Pelosi questions Republican tactics in CAFTA win IT AINT OVE
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Pelosi questions Republican tactics in CAFTA win
IT AINT OVER YET
Reuters
Thursday, July 28, 2005; 5:22 PM
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The House of Representatives' top Democrat accused Republicans on Thursday of possibly illegal action to encourage some Democrats to vote for a free-trade pact with Central America.
The House voted 217-215 in favor of the U.S.-Central American Free Trade Agreement, or CAFTA, early on Thursday morning, with 15 Democrats joining 202 Republicans in support.
At a briefing hours later, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, complained that deals offered by House Republicans to win CAFTA made the House seem like the "set of 'Let's Make a Deal,"' referring to a TV game show.
Some Democrats were made offers that they said they didn't think "passed legal muster," Pelosi told reporters.
She refused to provide any details of who was involved and what was offered that might have been illegal. She also said the deals were hard to prove because they weren't consummated.
But "those who have more knowledge" and were directly involved might file a complaint with the House's ethics committee, Pelosi said.
The offers went beyond the normal horse-trading that occurs in Congress, Pelosi said, comparing it to what occurred on the House floor during a Medicare prescription drug bill vote.
The House's ethics committee admonished House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, a Texas Republican, last year for having offered to endorse the son of a fellow Republican if the lawmaker voted for the prescription drug legislation.
The lawmaker, Rep. Nick Smith of Michigan, ended up voting against the bill, and his son lost a congressional primary.
House Republicans denied Pelosi's accusation.
"Nancy Pelosi's wheels have come off the track. The sheer lunacy of her comments is an indication of just how far out of the mainstream she has led her party and her caucus in the House," said Kevin Madden, a spokesman for DeLay.
Meanwhile, House Majority Whip Roy Blunt, a Missouri Republican responsible for rounding up party votes in the House, told reporters "it didn't hurt" that Congress was putting the finishing touches on a federal highway bill at the same time that the House was voting on CAFTA.
"It's certainly not beyond the realm of possibility" that lawmakers would tie their votes on CAFTA to getting certain projects in the highway bill, Blunt said.
"But we don't do near as much of that as people think," he added.
The Senate approved CAFTA last month 54-45. But it has to vote again because the U.S. Constitution requires bills affecting government revenues to begin in the House.
Senate supporters hope opponents will agree to final approval without further debate. That would send the bill to President Bush for his signature.
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist said he did not anticipate any problems getting Senate approval again. Senate aides said they hoped that could be done before August.
