Pelosi, Sarbanes tease dark money overhaul as the party’s grand opening salvo
Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of California and Maryland Rep. John Sarbanes offered a sneak peak Friday of what will likely be christened HR 1 in the 116th Congress. Instead of starting from scratch, the bill will draw from numerous existing proposals — including some that have languished for years during GOP control.
Though short on specifics, the pair revealed that the package will draw from an existing voting rights measure (HR 2978) and a proposed change in federal ethics laws that would require disclosure of presidential tax returns. Sarbanes, who leads the party’s Democracy Reform Task Force and has been working on the measure for months, called it a once in a generation opportunity to overhaul the nation’s political system. It also will offer Democrats a template as they head into the 2020 presidential campaigns. President Donald Trump, for example, has refused to release his tax returns.
View the complete December 3 article by Kate Ackley on The Roll Call website here.