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Representative Maxine Waters (D-CA) is frustrated that her ethics investigation has been suspended – shortly before she was supposed to face an investigative hearing to look at the charges against her. The pause came abruptly in October, when investigators of the House Ethics Committee discovered a critical piece of information – an E-mail from Waters’s Chief of Staff – that had not been turned over to committee investigators. Now – according to the Washington Post – investigators are trying to determine why the E-mail was not discovered until after the formal investigation had concluded

Ethics: You may never have heard of Rep. Darrell Issa, but you will soon. Republicans have tasked him with cleaning up four years of Democratic misrule and misconduct. It's a big job, but somebody simply must do it. For proof, look no further than Tuesday's dirty debacle with Rep. Charles Rangel, who walked out of a congressional hearing before being found guilty by the House ethics committee on 11 of 13 charges of misconduct. Democrats were keen to rid themselves of this scandal before the GOP takes over in January. That let them control the outcome while pretending to be...

Once upon a time, patriotism was said to be the last refuge of the scoundrel. Today, it’s racism. Or, more accurately, manufactured claims of racism. Take Charlie Rangel, for example. The embattled Harlem Democrat has further sullied his tattered reputation by implying that his troubles are racially motivated. He told CNN last week, “I think that the numbers look odd in terms of the number of African-Americans that have been brought before the [House Ethics] committee.” Yes, the panel has investigated eight Congressional Black Caucus members over the last two years. But five of them (including Rangel) were part of...

Rep. Zoe Lofgren, a Democrat from San Jose, knew she had one of the toughest assignments in Washington when Speaker Nancy Pelosi called just before President Obama's 2009 inauguration. Pelosi, who had famously pledged to create "the most honest, most open and most ethical Congress in history," wanted Lofgren to chair the House ethics panel, formally known as the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct. "She called me at home," Lofgren recalled. "I don't remember her exact words, but she said it was something important to do, she thought I would do it well and she needed me." Lofgren asked...

An independent ethics office accused Rep. Maxine Waters of violating House conflict-of-interest rules by intervening on behalf of a minority-owned bank in which her husband held $250,000 worth of stock, according to a report released Monday by the House ethics committee as part of its preparation for a "trial" of the California Democrat. The report, written in August 2009 by the Office of Congressional Ethics, became the basis of a full-scale investigation of Waters by the ethics committee. A special bipartisan investigative panel of the committee has found "substantial reason to believe" that Waters violated House rules. Waters, the number...

WASHINGTON -- Harlem Rep. Charles Rangel said yesterday that investigators have unearthed new allegations of misconduct against him, while House Democratic leaders increased the pressure on him to reach a settlement before a congressional trial starts Thursday. "We waited almost two years, and they finally investigated, and guess what -- they have some more alleged violations," Rangel said. The embattled pol did not reveal whether the latest accusations were previously unknown to the public or were related to the original charges that prompted the probe by the House Ethics Committee. The alleged misdeeds include Rangel using House stationery to solicit...

On Friday, NLPC asked the House Ethics Committee to investigate Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY) for paying $830,000 for a newly-built home in 2006 that was worth more than $1.2 million. The home was built by Robert Gaskin, a contractor who does work on numerous projects for which Meeks has secured taxpayer funds. Click here to download a 26-page pdf of the Complaint. Classified a “mansion” by the City of New York, the Queens home has about 6,000 square feet, meaning that Meeks paid $138 per square feet. That price is less than half the cost per square foot for homes...

Just as the cherry blossoms arrive each spring around the capital's Tidal Basin, cases of Congressional ethics appear to be blooming everywhere in Washington. Harlem Congressman Charlie Rangel's Ways and Means Chairmanship floated away this week. New York Congressman Eric Mass dropped his House seat via retirement ahead of sexual harassment allegations. But the most striking—and relevant—of all ethics cases is passing without notice. It's worth a close look. It involves earmarks, which everyone in America knows Congress has promised to clean up. Read the tale below, and discover how Congress assumes that the once-spectacular issue of earmark abuse can...

Charlie Rangel’s decision to temporarily step aside as chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee does not signify an end to his ethics woes. More important, it doesn’t mean the House is finally taking ethics seriously. Rangel is just the latest poster child for misconduct: Not a season goes by without at least one member of Congress ducking down halls to dodge reporters’ questions about ethical transgressions. Indeed, even in this case, four other members took exactly the same Caribbean trip for which Rangel has been admonished, but were let off the hook. In a decision that defies logic,...

The House Ethics Committee Has Spent Too Much Time Sniping At Its Own Investigative Arm A simmering conflict between the House ethics committee and its fledgling investigative arm has escalated into open combat, prompting watchdogs to warn that lawmakers may be gearing up to kill the new Office of Congressional Ethics.Following the accidental leak on Oct. 29 of a 22-page ethics panel activity report, most news stories have trumpeted the more than 30 House members identified as apparently under investigation. These include at least seven lawmakers caught up in the panel's ongoing probe of defense earmarks and the now-defunct lobbying...

OMG ! ANOTHER Charlie Rangel Revelation If they ever try to set the scandals surrounding House Ways and Means Chairman Charlie Rangel to film, it will need more sequels than the Halloween series, and will probably be just as horrific. * In September he admitted a failure to report $75 thousand in taxes. * He was discovered taking a tax break for people whose primary residence was in Washington DC, but if his primary residence was in DC he couldn't be congressman representing NYC. And besides, he was occupying four rent controlled controlled apartments in New York, the rule is...

[Guess who], March 19, 2009 on CNBC Squawkbox We sincerely hope you get to the bottom of what you did or didn’t do. The American people are lucky to have a dedicated dependable deplorable public servant like you in Washington, DC. Well, did you guess it before you clicked?

HOTSHOT RANGEL DISSED HIS MRS. By SUSAN EDELMAN and ISABEL VINCENT October 5, 2008 -- Alma Rangel is a loyal and supportive wife who was scorned and dumped after her husband found new success, her lawyer told The Post. Just a month after he took the reins of the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee last year, Rep. Charles Rangel accused his wife of "cruel and inhuman treatment" and "constructive abandonment," which refers to a lack of sexual intimacy, in divorce papers. Stunned and heartbroken, Alma decided to wage battle against her powerful hubby of 42 years, disputing his alleged...

Feinstein Conflict Allegations 'Aren't Going Away,' Watchdogs Say By Fred Lucas CNSNews.com Staff Writer May 08, 2007 (CNSNews.com) - Sen. Dianne Feinstein may have had as much of a financial interest in two defense contractors as her husband who controlled them, according to California law. The state's "community property law" could be relevant at a time when the senior Democratic senator from California is facing allegations of a conflict of interest and growing calls for an inquiry. Feinstein stepped down late last year from the Senate Appropriations Committee's subcommittee on military construction (MILCON) after five years on the panel. The...

There is so much wrong with the Conyers situation that Pelosi shouldn’t have to think twice about nixing Conyers’ chairmanship. Let us look at how the Conyers scandal epitomizes the ethics mess in the House: First, releasing its report late on Friday before the New Year’s holiday weekend made it clear that the House “Ethics” Committee intended to minimize public understanding of the Conyers scandal. This is classic Washington Establishment manipulation of the news cycle to insulate itself against public accountability. Second, Conyers responded to the “Ethics” committee by “accepting responsibility” for a “lack of clarity” in asking aides to...

A former aide to Florida congressman Mark Foley will go before investigators today. Mark Foley's former chief of staff Kirk Fordham will testify today before the house ethics committee. Fordham says he warned house speaker Dennis Hastert's staff three years ago of Foley's inappropriate conduct toward pages. Hastert has denied knowing of Foley's conduct before the end of september and has said anyone involved in a coverup should lose their job.

WASHINGTON The House ethics committee has approved a $2 million payout from a lobbying firm to a top Appropriations Committee staffer. The lobbying firm's ties to Appropriations Chairman Jerry Lewis, R-Calif., are under federal investigation. Jeff Shockey got $1.96 million in severance payments when he left Washington-based Copeland, Lowery, Jacquez, Denton, & White early last year to become deputy staff director of the Appropriations Committee. The payments have been criticized by government watchdog groups because Copeland, Lowery, which specializes in helping clients that want federal funding for projects, frequently lobbies the Appropriations Committee. "It appears that the terms of your...

About a month or so ago, I sent a facsimile to the office of the Senate Ethics Committee. This response was dated July 31, but must have been at my box within the last several days. The last time I had checked it was about five days ago. I tried to present some evidence regarding Hillary's role in the campaign finance fraud of 2000 that is the subject of our film, INDICTING HILLARY. I expressed the willingness of the man with all the knowledge and documents ---- THE DONOR, PETER PAUL ---- to come before the committee and testify. The...

FACSIMILE TRANSMISSION From: (name and contact info) To: Senator George Voinovich, Attn Doug Dziak fax 202.228.1382 cc Robert Walker, Chief Counsel, Ethics Committee fax 202.224.7416 Date: 6-20-06 Re: Sen. Hillary Clinton ethics complaint Senator Voinovich, as researcher, writer, and co-producer of a documentary film regarding the Senator Hillary Clinton finance scandal perpetrated in 2000 and continuing to this day, I was shocked that your committee concluded that she had done nothing wrong. Sir, I appreciate the fact that you are very busy doing the people’s business, and it is probably not your fault that you were not presented with all...

Advocacy Group Says Minority Leader Guilty of Gross Violation: Leahy and Levin Also Named ALEXANDRIA, VA - The American Conservative Union, the nations oldest and largest conservative grassroots organization, yesterday filed an ethics complaint against Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV). The complaint comes in response to Sen. Reid's May 12th reference to judicial nominee Henry Saad's confidential FBI file on the floor of the United States Senate. "Henry Saad would have been filibustered anyway…," said Reid on the floor of the Senate. "All you need to do is have a member go upstairs and look at his confidential report...