Ok, so was this a story about a guy renting an apartment, or opinion piece that used that to get people to read it.
I wonder who else rents apartments from this guy. > -----Original Message----- > From: Larry C. Lyons [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > Sent: Wednesday, February 08, 2006 4:11 PM > To: CF-Community > Subject: FW: Boehner Rents Apartment Owned by Lobbyist in D.C. > > To quote one of my favourite philosophers (the parrot in Aladdin), > "Why am I not surprised, I'm going to have a heart attack and die from > not surprised." > > The more things change, the more they remain the same: > > http://www.antiwrap.com/?879 > > Boehner Rents Apartment Owned by Lobbyist in D.C. > > By Thomas B. Edsall and Jonathan Weisman > Washington Post Staff Writers > Wednesday, February 8, 2006; A03 > > Rep. John A. Boehner (R-Ohio), who was elected House majority leader > last week, is renting his Capitol Hill apartment from a veteran > lobbyist whose clients have direct stakes in legislation Boehner has > co-written and that he has overseen as chairman of the Education and > the Workforce Committee. > > The relationship between Boehner, John D. Milne and Milne's wife, > Debra R. Anderson, underscores how intertwined senior lawmakers have > become with the lobbyists paid to influence legislation. Boehner's > primary residence is in West Chester, Ohio, but for $1,600 a month, he > rents a two-bedroom basement apartment near the House office buildings > on Capitol Hill owned by Milne, Boehner spokesman Don Seymour said > yesterday. Boehner's monthly rent appears to be similar to other > rentals of two-bedroom English basement apartments close to the House > side of the Capitol in Southeast, based on a review of apartment > listings. > > Milne's clients -- including restaurant chains and health insurance > companies -- hired him to lobby on issues at the heart of Boehner's > work, including minimum-wage increases, small-business tax breaks and > tax-free savings accounts to help cover insurance costs, congressional > lobbying records show. > > In the weeks preceding last week's GOP leadership elections, Boehner > acknowledged his close ties to the lobbying community, but he assured > Republican lawmakers that all of his relationships were ethical and he > campaigned on a platform of change and reform. Seymour reiterated that > message last night. > > "John Milne does not lobby John Boehner on any issue and has not > lobbied him on any issue during the time period in which John has been > renting the property," he said. > > Seymour added that he does not know if other members of Milne's > mCapitol Management firm have lobbied Boehner. "We really have no idea > on this one," he said. "We'd have to know who else works for those > firms, which we don't offhand. It's possible the answer is yes, but we > don't know." > > House members may not accept anything from lobbyists worth more than > $50. If Boehner is paying market-rate rent, it would appear he is not > violating that rule. > > Boehner's work closely coincides with the interests of Milne. In 2002, > the House approved the Economic Security and Worker Assistance Act, a > tax measure originally drafted by Boehner, Rep. Sam Johnson (R-Tex.) > and Rep. Howard P. "Buck" McKeon (R-Calif.) as the Back to Work Act. > The measure eventually was signed into law. > > Lobbying disclosure forms indicate that one of Milne's clients, Fortis > Health Plans, hired him to lobby the Economic Security and Worker > Assistance Act. > > Another client, the Buca di Beppo chain of Italian restaurants, hired > Milne to push the Small Business Tax Fairness Act, which would allow > restaurants to deduct the cost of investments at a faster pace. The > measure was introduced by Rep. Kay Granger (R-Tex.) in 2003, with > Boehner as one of 15 co-sponsors. Many of its provisions have since > become law. > > Fortis, now called Assurant Health, also asked Milne to push Health > Savings Accounts, the tax-free savings accounts established by > Congress to help with health care costs not covered by high-deductible > plans. Boehner is a proponent of such accounts, which President Bush > is targeting for a major expansion. > > Buca di Beppo and another restaurant chain, Parasole Restaurant > Holdings Inc., also hired Milne to lobby on the minimum wage and tax > credits for tips, issues directly under the Education and the > Workforce Committee's purview. > > The restaurant industry has long fought minimum-wage increases, > seeking instead to augment restaurant wages with tips that become more > valuable if they can avoid taxation. Despite numerous attempts by > Democrats and some pro-labor Republicans, the minimum wage has not > been raised since 1997, when it was lifted from $4.75 to $5.15. Since > then, inflation has eroded its value to near-record lows. > > That such companies would hire Milne is no mystery. His firm overtly > promotes its connections to influential lawmakers. > > "At mCapitol Management, we specialize in leveraging relationships on > our clients' behalf. Our bipartisan team's unique resources allow our > clients unparalleled access at the international, federal, state and > local level," the firm's Web site boasts. > > Milne could not be reached by phone or e-mail. His wife, Anderson, who > is on the advisory board of mCapitol, said she and her husband have > been friends with Boehner and his wife for years. After buying the > house in 2004, she said, she mentioned at a social gathering that they > had a place to rent, and Boehner said he was interested. > > Anderson described Boehner as an "excellent tenant" who pays his rent on > time. > > Seymour said Boehner originally met Anderson in the early 1990s, when > she worked in the administration of President George H.W. Bush. > (c) 2006 The Washington Post Company > > -- > Your representative owes you, not his industry only, but his judgment; > and he betrays instead of serving you if he sacrifices it to your > opinion. > > Edmond Burke > > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Message: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=i:5:196437 Archives: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/threads.cfm/5 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=s:5 Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=89.70.5 Donations & Support: http://www.houseoffusion.com/tiny.cfm/54
