Leading the Pack on Ethics Reform

Senator Obama (along with Sen. Russel Feingold who deserves equal praise, but who does not appear to be in the '08 field), unsatisfied with the steps the Senate was prepared to make in its ethics overhaul bill helped to strengthen that bill by adding amendments that gave it some teeth.

The party leaders began by teaming up to introduce a much weaker bipartisan bill, and lawmakers in both parties acknowledged behind-the-scenes resistance to strengthening it. But many found amendments to strengthen the bill — a number of them offered by Senators Russell D. Feingold of Wisconsin and Barack Obama of Illinois, both Democrats — politically difficult to oppose.

He's one of the leaders in the fight to clean up Congress.