Charlie Rangel To Face House Ethics Charges

Most ethical Congress ever!

A House investigative committee on Thursday charged New York Rep. Charles Rangel with multiple ethics violations, a blow to the former Ways and Means chairman and an election-year headache for Democrats.

The committee did not immediately specify the charges against the Democrat, who has served in the House for some 40 years and is fourth in House seniority. The announcement by a four-member panel of the House ethics committee sends the case to a House trial, where a separate eight-member panel of Republicans and Democrats will decide whether the violations can be proved by clear and convincing evidence.

The timing of the announcement ensures that it will stretch into the fall campaign, and Republicans are certain to make it an issue as they try to capture majority control of the House. Speaker Nancy Pelosi had once promised to "drain the swamp" of ethical misdeeds by lawmakers in arguing that Democrats should be in charge.

There is a conservative Republican running in the district but it's what? 105% or so Democratic?

I doubt the charges will hurt Rangel in the general election, he'll use it to rally the troops against those SOBs in DC trying to destroy him.

In an interesting twist Rangel does face a primary challenge this September from Adam Clayton Powell IV. Powell's father, Adam Clayton Powell Jr., was the man Rangel unseated to win the seat about 100 years ago. The elder Powell was a longtime member of Congress whom the Democrats refused to seat after the '66 elections because of corruption charges. Powell then won the special election to fill the vacancy and sat in the House until Rangel beat him the 1970 primary.

So, we've seen this movie before.

posted by DrewM. at 05:11 PM

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