House Homeland Security Committee faces ethics inquiry

Washington Post ^ | December 5, 2009 | Carol D. Leonnig and Spencer S. Hsu

[jazusamo]

Chairman received donations from firms appearing at hearing

At a hearing in late March, the nation's credit card companies faced the threat of expensive new rules from an unlikely regulator: the House Homeland Security Committee, chaired by Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.).

The committee had never before dealt with credit card issues, but Thompson warned Visa, MasterCard and others that Congress might need to impose tighter security standards costing millions of dollars to protect customers from identity theft.

Behind the scenes, some of Thompson's staff members sensed a different motive -- an attempt to pressure the companies into making political donations to the chairman, according to several former committee staff members.

Now the House ethics committee is investigating the propriety of the committee's operations, and whether its members' interactions with companies compromised its work. Within a few weeks of the hearing, Thompson collected $15,000 in donations from the credit card industry and its Washington-based lobbyists, a Washington Post analysis shows. No legislation on card security has been introduced.

Several former committee staff members, who requested anonymity in order to speak freely, have told The Post the hearing on credit cards was one of several committee actions that concerned the staff because of their consideration of potential donors and contractors friendly to Thompson. The current ethics inquiry was prompted this summer, according to an ethics document obtained by The Post, when a former committee aide alleged she was fired after complaining to her bosses that a lobbyist made improper requests to staff members.

Thompson -- who made headlines separately this week by calling a committee hearing to investigate Tareq and Michaele Salahi's ability to get past Secret Service and into a White House state dinner without invitation -- said he did not arrange a hearing to generate campaign donations.

[jazusamo]

Seems the Democrats may have a larger criminal operation going in the House since taking control than Capone did in Obama's hometown.

[La Enchiladita]

Yet another WaPo article putting dems in a dim light!!
Oh gee, and this Thompson is the one who called for the dinner-gate hearings, hah!!

[jazusamo]

I like Carol Leonnig, she goes after Dems and has written quite a bit on Murtha.

[Nachum]

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