Trauner calls for "new ethical standards for members of Congress"

Wyoming's Democratic candidate for U.S. House Gary Trauner held a press conference in Cheyenne this morning. Haven't heard yet if any Republican moles tried to burrow into this one. Speaking of underhanded tactics, today's press conference was all about ethical standards. The press release is included here:

Democratic Congressional Candidate Gary Trauner today called for a new ethical standard for members of Congress, and pledged to lead by example. Trauner said he has called for the resignations of Democratic and Republican members of Congress who violated ethics rules, and says he will continue to do so, regardless of party.

"Last election, I was perhaps the first national federal candidate who called for William Jefferson, a Democrat, to resign after $90,000 in cash was found in his freezer," Trauner said. He is calling for Charles Rangel, the Democratic Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, to step down from his leadership post because of questions raised about tax payments on property owned by Rangel. "People are not perfect, but the head of the tax committee can't get away with not paying his own taxes! And don't tell me he didn't know any better. No excuses,"
Trauner added.

However, Trauner says he is very disappointed that Cynthia Lummis, and Barbara Cubin before her, don't take the same road. "Neither my opponent at the time nor my opponent now uttered one word when a member of their own party, Tom Delay, was under investigation, and subsequently indicted, for money laundering and corrupting the system. In fact, Barbara Cubin never gave back the thousands in tainted money she received from Delay and his cronies."

Trauner said that Cubin and Lummis are content with politics as usual, and that's not good enough for the people of Wyoming. "No wonder people seem to have lost faith in the system and don't want to trust any politician," he said. He called on Cubin and Lummis to take the same ethical high road with people in their own party. "We should be outraged with the behavior of people like Senator Ted Stevens in Alaska, Senator David Vitter in Louisiana and the behavior of many members of this Administration such as former Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez – regardless of legal outcomes," Trauner said.

Cubin and Lummis have so far been silent on ethical issues. Trauner said that's not the kind of leadership people in Wyoming want. "True leadership means taking a stand on issues, standing up for your core values and beliefs," he said. "People in Wyoming believe in honesty, obeying the law, and playing by the rules. Our representatives in Washington should do the same," he concluded.