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An irate Congressman, Dan Burton, branded as 'baloney' and a 'cock
and bull story' charges in the press that he had threatened a
lobbyist of the Pakistan embassy here for campaign contributions.
Mr Burton, who is currently the chairman of the House Government
Reform and Oversight committee that is investigating White House
fund-raising during the election last year, had himself raised
money for his own re-election from Indiana through
Pakistan-American, pro-Khalistan and Kashmiri lobbies in the
country.
It was reported here on Wednesday that Mr Burton had "threatened"
Mark A. Siegel, a lobbyist for the Pakistan mission here employed
by the previous ambassador - Maleeha Lodhi - that he would cut off
political access to the lobbyist if he failed to raise $ 5000 for
his campaign fund.
Mr Burton, who is the leading advocate for Khalistani and Kashmiri
causes in the U.S. Congress insisted that he never threatened the
lobbyist, Mr Siegel but had simply expressed his disappointment "in
an off hand, way with the Pakistani ambassador to the United
States." He added: "when I assumed this responsibility (becoming
chairman of the ethics committee), I expected to be the target of
some unfair and malicious attacks. However I did not expect them
to come this soon. This is a sign of desperation on somebody's
part."
Mr Burton also questioned the appearance of the story "one day
before my funding bill comes to the floor." He has asked for $ 3.8
million to fund the committee's investigations.
Meanwhile, delighted Democratic Party Congressmen stepped up their
attacks on Mr Burton who has developed a fearsome reputation as
being highly partisan and tenacious on the floor of the House.
Minority leader Richard Gephardt called Mr Burton's investigation
into campaign finance abuses involving the White House as
"blatantly partisan" and claimed "he had abused his power" by
confining the probe to alleged illegal campaign activities by the
Clinton administration and the Democratic National Committee."
In the light of the latest allegations against Mr Burton, Democrats
are now clamouring that the scope of the investigations be widened
to include all parties who may have been involved in fund-raising
improprieties during the 1996 campaign.
Riaz Khokhar, the new Pakistan ambassador to the United States, who
recently completed his tenure in New Delhi, was almost immediately
confronted with the news of the contretemps involving Mr Burton and
the Pakistan embassy. Mr Khokhar declined to comment on the
controversy which occurred during his predecessor, Ms Maleeha
Lodhi's tenure.
Mr Dan Burton has come in for some stinging criticism editorially
from the mainstream press. The New York Times in an edit titled
"Reining in Dan Burton" commented that "Mr Burton's fitness to lead
a high-profile ethics inquiry is now seriously in question ... the
accusations about Mr Burton's own fund-raising tactics give the
House another excellent reason to postpone the vote."
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