Goode News

Goode News
November 2, 2005

Fraud and abuse involving the use of federal government-issued credit cards has been publicized recently, and some of us in the House of Representatives believe that there is no excuse for this abuse, and it must be stopped. We have joined to sponsor legislation that is known as the Government Credit Card Sunshine Act.

Neither I, nor any member of my staff, has a government-issued credit card. Yet, many who work for the Congress and the federal agencies do carry these cards. In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the credit limit on government credit cards was raised from $15,000 to $250,000. The fraud and abuse turned up by government auditors showed that government credit cards were used to pay for Ozzie Osborne concert tickets, tattoos, lingerie, gambling, cruises, exotic dance clubs, prostitutes, bartender school tuition and car payments. We can only imagine what mischief may be wrought now that the limit on these cards has been raised 16 fold.

Those of us who are sponsoring this bill believe that part of keeping a handle on government spending should involve effective oversight on spending at all times and certainly during natural disasters. The Government Credit Card Sunshine Act would require that every government credit card bill be posted on the respective department's Inspector General website within 15 business days. The bill also says that federal employees whose abuse totals more than $500 shall face immediate dismissal, be forced to repay the bill and, if applicable, return the items purchased. Posting credit card bills in this way will expedite oversight and expose any fraud that exists.

There are also many of us who believe that the laws of the United States should not be subject to the United Nations nor to the laws of other nations. This issue came to the fore as some on the U. S. Supreme Court have cited the law of foreign countries in drafting opinions for the United States. The Reaffirming American Independence Resolution instructs the federal courts to remember that their role is interpreting U. S. law, not importing foreign laws, which is a clear violation of the separation of powers under the U. S. Constitution.

The bill says that judicial determinations regarding the meaning of the Constitution of the United States should not be based on judgments, laws, or pronouncements of foreign institutions unless such foreign judgments, laws, or pronouncements inform an understanding of the original meaning of the Constitution of the United States.

As the United States was formed and exists under the Constitution and the rule of U. S. law, this legislation states that Americans' ability to live their lives within clear legal boundaries is the foundation of the rule of law and is essential to freedom. Further, it points out that it is the appropriate judicial role to faithfully interpret the expression of the popular will through the Constitution and laws enacted by duly elected representatives of the American people and our system of checks and balances. And, it finds that Americans should not have to look for guidance on how to live their lives from the often contradictory decisions of any of hundreds of other foreign organizations.

http://www.house.gov/goode/20051102.shtml