60 Lawmakers Sample Chicago Hospitality
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CHICAGO — A group of U.S. legislators ate breakfast atop a skyscraper and cruised down the Chicago River on Friday on a whirlwind, corporation-paid lobbying tour.
About 60 members of Congress, including House Speaker Thomas S. Foley (D-Wash.) and House Minority Leader Robert H. Michel (R-Ill.), attended the city’s “Congressional Weekend.” The hosts were Mayor Richard M. Daley and Rep. Dan Rostenkowski (D-Ill.).
Daley and Rostenkowski said the trip represents a chance to showcase Chicago and lobby for increased federal dollars for the nation’s third-largest city.
Critics say the trip, funded by $500,000 in corporate donations, amounts to little more than a paid junket for the lawmakers.
“This is symptomatic of the sway that the cash constituents of Congress have over the members of Congress,” said Larry Makinson, research director of the Washington-based Center for Responsive Politics. “They wouldn’t put on a tour like this for 60 normal citizens.”
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