Honourary Oirishmen

In a thought process perhaps similar to what was going on at Fáilte Ireland (Irish Tourist Board), we had wondered if the Irish Republic was slipping down the list of preferred corrupt junket destinations with all the focus on Tom DeLay's lobbyist-financed trip to London and St Andrews. Imagine our joy therefore when it turns out that other American Republicans couldn't resist a little of the Oirish Republican Culture:

[via Washington Post] yesterday, the Hill newspaper reported that five members of Congress traveled to Ireland in 2003 at the expense of a lobbying firm, which could be a violation of congressional rules. The paper said disclosure forms report that a lobbying firm, Kessler & Associates Business Services Inc., paid for travel to a four-day international trade seminar by Sen. Gordon Smith (R-Ore.), then-Sen. Don Nickles (R-Okla.) and Reps. Howard Coble (R-N.C.), Harold Rogers (R-Ky.) and E. Clay Shaw Jr. (R-Fla.).

These dudes certainly put the 'R' in corruption. Today's NYT has other details from the Hill story:

The trip, a four-day international trade seminar at Ashford Castle in Ireland's County Mayo, took place in August 2003, the newspaper said.

Disclosure reports for the five lawmakers show that Kessler & Associates footed the $25,000 bill, even though congressional ethics guidelines bar lobbying firms from paying for lawmakers' travel.

So the 5 pols-for-hire spent $5,000 a head; lucky the dollar was a bit stronger back then or it could have been even more. Did the Senators get a bigger room than the House members? You know how these hierarchies have to be maintained even on the road. But is it lèse-majesté for non-Bush Republicans to stay in the Presidential Suite (yours for 1,000 euro this summer)?