Exemptions From Ethics Rules Allow Lawmakers to Accept Almost Anything

There's Always a Way
Exemptions From Ethics Rules Allow Lawmakers to Accept Almost Anything

By Jeffrey H. Birnbaum
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, August 4, 2005; Page D01

A lushly produced video on DVD arrived in lobbyists' mailboxes all over Washington this summer. In it, Sen. Michael D. Crapo narrates what amounts to a sales pitch for them to pay $2,500 each to party with him later this month in beautiful Sun Valley, Idaho.

"We shoot all day. We fish all day. We ride horses all day. And then we finish the day with the best barbecue in the West," the Idaho Republican boasts. "Frankly, I think this is the best event in the country."