Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and Democratic New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez found something they agree on Thursday, and other lawmakers say they will pitch in, Ocasio-Cortez announced in a Thursday evening tweet.
From Daily Caller:
“Okay, with [Democratic California Sen. Brian Schatz and Cruz] we’ve got at least one D-R team in the Senate to ban members becoming lobbyists, [and] myself w/ [Republican Texas Rep. Chip Roy] makes at least one D-R team in the House. And that’s just in a few hours – there will surely be more from both parties to sign on. Nice,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote with a thumbs-up emoji.
Cruz and Ocasio-Cortez bantered about their shared discontent with the so-called “revolving door of K Street” — federal lawmakers using their connections to become well-heeled lobbyists once they are out of office. Law mandates ex-House members must wait a year to lobby their former colleagues, while ex-senators must wait two.
A report finding around half of ex-members of the 115th Congress went straight to lobbying and other gigs with federal influence came out Thursday and prompted the exchange.
“Here’s something I don’t say often: on this point, I AGREE with [Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez]. Indeed, I have long called for a LIFETIME BAN on former Members of Congress becoming lobbyists. The Swamp would hate it, but perhaps a chance for some bipartisan cooperation?” Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz wrote on Twitter Thursday.