Really? Is this for real? Politicians across the nation, especially those at the highest levels of Washington, take in millions of dollars in “favors” each year. You mean to say that a $125.00 bottle of wine as a gift is said to violate House ethics rules? Talk about stupidity AND hypocrisy!
Those of you who believe that politicians don’t accept all kinds of gifts, favors, bribes – you name it, should have your heads examined. TGO
Refer to story below. Source: ABC OTUS News
By Jonathan Karl | ABC OTUS News – Fri, Nov 16, 2012
That’s a really nice bottle of wine the President gave the Speaker of the House for his birthday: A reserve bottling of the Brunello di Montalcino from a top producer (Poggio Antico) – and a great vintage (1997!) to boot.
It’s also expensive. The only place I can find it for sale in Washington, DC is Schneider’s of Capitol Hill (good place – I once scored a couple bottles of Pappy van Winkle there, but that is another story). The price tag: $125.
Now, not to be a downer here, but members of the U.S. House of Representatives are subject to limits on the cash value of gifts they can receive.
The House gift limit: $50 for a single gift and no combination of gifts from a single source can exceed $100 a year.
So, it appears, Speaker Boehner may not be able to accept this gift without violating House ethics rules. Don’t believe me? Just read page 295 of the House Ethics Manual.
There are some exceptions to the gift rule laid out in the Ethics Manual if Obama and Boehner are personal friends or if President Obama could be considered a “government entity.”
If the bottle of wine does indeed violate House rules, Speaker Boehner needs to either promptly return the bottle of wine, pay the President the fair market value of the wine or get a waiver (rarely granted) by the House Ethics Committee.
Unfortunately, this expensive bottle of wine is small potatoes compared to the bigger issue of the huge political-action-committee donations which has already corrupted our political process. Legalized corruption exists at local, state, and federal levels. Who could have imagined that the Walton family billionaires would get involved with local school board elections?
You are so right! And at the end of the day it’s the middle-class in this country that gets shafted. We continue to pay higher and higher taxes and are constantly reminded of the national deficit. In the meantime, our government is throwing billions and billions of dollars at countries such as Pakistan. The whole thing is a farce!