Ethics watchdogs looking for teeth

[PhilipShore]

Washington Times
http://washingtontimes.com/national/20070130-114004-7908r.htm

New ethics rules in Congress look strict on paper but lack robust enforcement to make them meaningful, a longtime pitfall of anti-corruption measures, government watchdogs say.

Lax enforcement, they say, exposes Democrats to criticism of conducting business as usual in Washington now that they hold the majority.

"If nobody steps up enforcement, the Democrats will have a problem in 2008," said Melanie Sloan, executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.

"Much of the conduct that everyone was upset about in the last election was already against the rules," she said. "Now they are really, really against the rules. ... Nothing has changed in the enforcement realm."

[aquart]

1. Not just teeth. Shark teeth.

Pitbull teeth.

Vampire teeth.