WASHINGTON -- A Senate committee tore into Olympic leaders Wednesday over the Salt Lake bribery scandal and took quick action to place the IOC under the same law that deals with corrupt governments.

With two members calling for International Olympic Committee President Juan Antonio Samaranch to resign and a general skepticism that the IOC was ready to clean up its act, the Senate Commerce Committee repeatedly criticized a "culture of corruption" that left the rings tarnished and the games defamed.

"A pattern of payoffs, palace intrigue and padded budgets has clouded over the integrity of the Olympics," Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., said.

Despite some senators' urging that immediate financial action be taken, commerce panel chairman Sen. John McCain said he wanted to go slow on legislation that would make the Olympics a less-attractive product for sponsors and direct billion-dollar TV rights fees to the U.S. Olympic Committee instead of the IOC.

Such legislation could wind up hurting athletes training for next year's games in Sydney and the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake, the powerful Arizona Republican said.

But McCain, who held two IOC members to an excruciating 45 minutes questioning on Olympic finances and reform intentions, said he would immediately introduce a bill to place the international panel under the Federal Corrupt Practices Act, which forbids bribery of foreign officials.

"We'll do it today," he said.

The White House, meanwhile, said it hoped to have an answer soon on a USOC request to make the IOC a public body under international anti-corruption statutes.

After the three-hour session, McCain said he would consider a second hearing as IOC efforts to bounce back from the worst corruption case in its 105 years became clearer, well before the end of the year.
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