Taking a page from President Donald Trump, U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., is hoping to “drain the swamp” by changing lobbying regulations.
On Thursday, DeSantis announced that he was bringing out the “Drain the Swamp Act" to reform lobbying bans and “slow the revolving door between Capitol Hill and K Street.”
DeSantis made the case for his new proposal which he filed on Wednesday.
“President Trump has called for sweeping ethics reforms that will help 'drain the swamp' that is modern Washington,” DeSantis said. "The Drain the Swamp Act answers this call and will dramatically improve incentives for members of Congress, congressional staffers, and executive branch officials.”
The bill will “establish a uniform 5-year post-employment ban on the lobbying of any officer or employee of the executive branch or any member, officer, or employee of Congress by former executive branch officials and former members, officers, and employees of Congress, to establish a lifetime post-employment ban on lobbying on behalf of foreign governments by former senior executive branch officials, and for other purposes.” It will also add “consulting and advising” to the federal definition of “lobbying” and make it tougher for foreign nations to contribute money to political parties and candidates.
“Although legal, the revolving door culture of Washington has led to a deluge of members of Congress and congressional staffers leaving government service for lucrative lobbying jobs on K Street,” This contributes to the flourishing of the D.C. insider economy and exacerbates the extent to which Washington is out of touch with the concerns of taxpayers. I thank President Trump for taking the lead on reforming Washington and I hope we can pass this bill quickly."
The bill, which does not have any co-sponsors yet, was sent to the U.S. House Judiciary Committee, on which DeSantis sits, and the Committee on House Administration.
Now in his third term in the House, DeSantis has increasingly focused on congressional reform. Last month, DeSantis teamed up with U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, to push for a congressional term limits amendment.
