CREW Executive Director Melanie Sloan on House Ethics Rules

15 Mar 2005 // STATEMENT OF MELANIE SLOAN
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
CITIZENS FOR RESPONSIBILITY AND ETHICS IN WASHINGTON
March 15, 2005

FINALLY, SOMEONE ADMITTED THAT THE EMPEROR HAS NO CLOTHES – BUT IN THIS CASE, IT’S THAT THE ETHICS COMMITTEE DOESN’T ENFORCE ETHICS RULES.

FOR SOMETIME, THE ETHICS COMMITTEE HAS EXISTED IN NAME ONLY. FIRST, MOST OF THE REPUBLICAN MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE WERE REMOVED AND REPLACED WITH DELAY LOYALISTS. THEN FORMER CHAIRMAN HEFLEY WAS FORCED OUT. FINALLY, EVEN THE STAFF WAS FIRED.

WHAT HAPPENED TO THE ETHICS COMMITTEE AT THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR WAS LIKE A WELL ORCHESTRATED MOB HIT – ANYONE WHO HAD ANYTHING TO DO WITH MR. DELAY RECEIVING AN UNPRECEDENTED 3 ADMONISHMENTS LAST YEAR WAS TAKEN OUT. OF COURSE, THIS WAS ORGANIZED BY NONE OTHER THAN THE MOBSTER- IN-CHIEF IN OUR GOVERNMENT, MAJORITY LEADER TOM DELAY. RICHARD NIXON HIMSELF WOULD HAVE ENVIED DELAY’S ABILITY TO EVISCERATE HIS POLITICAL OPPONENTS.

BUT NOW, RANKING MEMBER ALAN MOLLOHAN, HARDLY KNOWN AS A POLITICAL MAVERICK, HAS FINALLY GOTTEN TIRED OF BEING ROLLED BY THE REPUBLICAN LEADERSHIP. HE HAS LEARNED THAT APPEASING TYRANTS IS IMPOSSIBLE AND HAS PROCLAIMED, “NO MORE.” NO LONGER WILL THE DEMOCRATS ON THE COMMITTEE ON STANDARDS OF OFFICIAL CONDUCT PROVIDE THE REPUBLICANS WITH THE COVER THEY NEED TO CONTINUE UNDERMINING THE INTEGRITY OF THE HOUSE WHILE PRETENDING TO UPHOLD ETHICAL STANDARDS.

MR. MOLLOHAN’S ACTIONS ARE UNPRECEDENTED. FIRST, MR. MOLLOHAN’S INTRODUCTION OF HIS RESOLUTION TO ROLL BACK REPUBLICAN MADE RULES CHANGES WAS THE FIRST TIME HE HAS SPOKEN ON A MATTER RELATED TO THE ETHICS COMMITTEE ON HIS OWN. ALL PREVIOUS COMMUNICATIONS WERE MADE JOINTLY WITH THE CHAIR OF THE COMMITTEE. SECOND, THE COMMITTEE HAS NEVER BEFORE FAILED TO ORGANIZE. THIS FAILURE TO ORGANIZE MEANS NOT JUST THAT THE ETHICS COMMITTEE CANNOT ACT, IT MEANS THAT THERE IS NO ETHICS COMMITTEE. THE COMMITTEE IS NOW OFFICIALLY DEFUNCT. OF COURSE, THE REPUBLICAN LEADERSHIP EFFECTIVELY NEUTERED THE COMMITTEE IN JANUARY, BUT NOW IT IS OFFICIAL. AND SPEAKER HASTERT’S CLAIMS THAT IT IS THE DEMOCRATS WHO KILLED THE ETHICS PROCESS ARE SIMPLY – AND OBVIOUSLY – PREPOSTEROUS.

CITIZENS FOR RESPONSIBILITY AND ETHICS IN WASHINGTON COMMENDS MR. MOLLOHAN AND THE OTHER DEMOCRATS ON THE ETHICS COMMITTEE, STEPHANIE TUBBS JONES, GENE GREEN, LUCILLE ROYBAL ALLARD AND MIKE DOYLE FOR REFUSING TO GO ALONG WITH THE ETHICS CHARADE.

NONETHELESS, THE HOUSE ETHICS COMMITTEE HAS DISBANDED AT A TIME WHEN NUMEROUS AND SERIOUS ETHICS QUESTIONS ARE UNRESOLVED. THE FIRST AND MOST SERIOUS IS WHETHER TOM DELAY IMPROPERLY ACCEPTED AN EXPENSE PAID TRIP TO SOUTH KOREA IN 2001 AT THE EXPENSE OF A REGISTERED FOREIGN AGENT.

THEN THERE IS THE MATTER OF THE NUMEROUS TRIPS MR. DELAY TOOK WITH JACK ABRAMOFF AND WHETHER MR. ABRAMOFF, A REGISTERED LOBBYIST PAID FOR ANY OF THAT TRAVEL. MOREOVER, EVEN IF MR. ABRAMOFF DID NOT DIRECTLY PAY FOR THE TRAVEL OF MR. DELAY AND MR. DELAY’S WIFE, IT APPEARS THAT MR. ABRAMOFF MAY HAVE ILLEGALLY FUNNELED MONEY THROUGH NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS TO PAY FOR MR. DELAY’S TRAVEL.

THE COMMITTEE SHOULD ALSO CONSIDER HOW CONG. MAXINE WATERS’ FAMILY MEMBERS HAVE MADE OVER $1 MILLION IN THE LAST EIGHT YEARS BY DOING BUSINESS WITH COMPANIES, CANDIDATES AND CAUSES THAT MS. WATERS HAS HELPED.

THE COMMITTEE SHOULD INVESTIGATE WHY SEVERAL MEMBERS, INCLUDING JOHN DOOLITTLE AND J.D. HAYWORTH HOSTED EVENTS IN LOBBYIST JACK ABRAMOFF’S LUXURY SKY BOXES WITHOUT REPORTING THE USE OF THE BOXES TO THE FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION.

THE COMMITEE NEEDS TO LOOK INTO THE REASON THAT TWO INDIAN TRIBES PAID $50,000 FOR CONG. BOB NEY AND OTHERS TO ACCOMPANY JACK ABRAMOFF ON A GOLF TRIP TO SCOTLAND.

THEN THERE IS THE MATTER OF CONG. RICK RENZI’S USE OF BANNED FINANCES TO FUND A LARGE PORTION OF HIS 2002 RE-ELECTION CAMPAIGN AND FAILING TO REPORT $39,000 IN CONTRIBUTIONS AND $101,000 IN EXPENDITURES.

THE SHADY IF NOT ACTUALLY ILLEGAL CONDUCT OF THESE MEMBERS WILL GO UNINVESTIGATED AND UNPUNISHED IF THE HOUSE DOES NOT PUT AN END TO THE IMPASSE OVER ETHICS. THE AMERICAN PUBLIC HAS THE RIGHT TO EXPECT THAT CONGRESS – CHARGED WITH POLICING THE CONDUCT OF ITS MEMBERS – WILL ACTUALLY DO SO.

For more information, contact Naomi Seligman at 202-588-5565.