introduced last week in the House Oversight Committee, therefore, looks like reason to celebrate. Committee Chairman James Comer , a staunch conservative, and Rep. Katie Porter , an outspoken liberal, put forth the Presidential Ethics Reform Act to bolster transparency and accountability for future presidents and vice presidents.
“In addition to requiring disclosure of conflicts of interest while in office, the bill requires presidents and vice presidents to disclose foreign payments, expensive gifts, loan transactions, and tax returns during the two-year period prior to time in office, during time in office, and for two years following departure from office,” the committee’s press release reads.
Such transparency might have mitigated recent controversies involving both the children of former President Donald Trump and especially of President Joe Biden or, perhaps, made it easier to condemn or penalize unethical behavior. The bill also would require disclosure when family members accompany the president or vice president on official travel and, importantly, to disclose if that family travel involves business purposes.
In this, both Porter and Comer are wise. The American presidency has evolved into the free world’s most powerful position, both because the United States is so large and strong and because the founders’ intended balance of powerConcentration of too much power in anyone’s hands is an invitation to abuse. The American presidency is not inherently abusive, but the opportunity for abusiveness is significantly high.
Every bill, of course, deserves scrutiny, and most could use some tweaking. This is no exception. Nonetheless, congressional leaders should make sure the Presidential Ethics Reform Act receives that scrutiny quickly and, unless unexpected major problems are found, that it is put on a fast track toward enactment.