Posted on 01/07/2017 11:08:11 AM PST by jazusamo
Judicial Watch Calls On House to Retain Congressional Ethics Office
JW Uncovers Another Obama Administration Email Scandal
Jihadists Train, Plan U.S. Attack from Mexican Border State
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Judicial Watch Calls On House to Retain Congressional Ethics Office
True to our non-partisan mission, nine years ago, we worked with then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s Special Task Force on Ethics Enforcement to push for an independent body to help handle ethics investigations of House members.
This effort led to the establishment in 2008 of the Office of Congressional Ethics. This week House Republicans proposed a rule change that would eliminate this office and set up a new entity under the complete control of the House Ethics Committee. This new entity would be less transparent and would be subject to severe restrictions on any investigations of allegations of misconduct.
Now this all took place during a late day meeting this past Monday, which was a federal holiday. Tracking developments from home, it became clear what was happening, and I tweeted the following:
Poor way to begin draining the swamp, @SpeakerRyan .
The liberal media and Democrats, of course, pounced, picking up the tweet and highlighting the opposition of the conservative Judicial Watch to this ethics gambit. Many Americans, who are conservative and principled, quickly saw this as more of the business as usual gamesmanship from Washington politicians who don’t want to be held accountable. (Democrats were particularly dishonest in their criticism, as many would have loved the see the ethics office disappear.)
Adding to the pressure on Congress, I issued this statement for JW on Tuesday morning:
It is shameful that House Republicans are trying to destroy the Office of Congressional Ethics, the most significant ethics reform in Congress when it was established nearly a decade ago. This drive-by effort to eliminate the Office of Congressional Ethics, which provides appropriate independence and transparency to the House ethics process, is a poor way for the Republican majority to begin “draining the swamp.” The American people will see this latest push to undermine congressional ethics enforcement as shady and corrupt. The full House should seriously consider whether it wants to bear the brunt of public outrage and go through with the rule change this afternoon.
President-elect Trump followed JW’s lead and good sense, subsequently tweeting his concern about the changes, too:
With all that Congress has to work on, do they really have to make the weakening of the Independent Ethics Watchdog, as unfair as it may be, their number one act and priority. Focus on tax reform, healthcare and so many other things of far greater importance! #DTS [Drain The Swamp]
At least for now, Mr. Trump clearly remembers how he won the presidency on his anti-corruption message.
More importantly, constituents called their House members to voice their objections. And within a few hours, House Republicans retreated and left the Office of Congressional Ethics intact.
Judicial Watch’s leadership and independence were noted all over the media (see, for example, Town Hall , The Washington Post , and Breitbart ). Even the liberal New York Times gave us a backhanded compliment :
The public protests over the House move to weaken the office were heartening. Even the conservative group Judicial Watch paused in its pursuit of Hillary Clinton to decry the [Rep. Bob] Goodlatte [R-VA] proposal as a “poor way to begin draining the swamp.”
The House Republicans now supposedly will do what they should have done in the first place, which is to discuss any ethics reform in a manner that is more transparent. Your Judicial Watch will continue to be a leader in that debate, advocating stronger ethics and more transparency and accountability on Capitol Hill.
JW Uncovers Another Obama Administration Email Scandal
Off the Wall Ping!
Contact to be added.
Of course we demand ethics, but this committee needs serious revision, or absolution.
Speaker Ryan Must Stop Sneak Attack on Office of Congressional Ethics
Posted on January 3, 2017 by Peter Flaherty
Some House Republicans — apparently led by Rep. Robert Goodlatte (R-VA) — are attempting to emasculate the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE). The House Conference reportedly voted last night 119-74 to place control of OCE under the Ethics Committee, effectively destroying it. The full House is scheduled today to vote on the larger Rules package of which Goodlatte’s amendment is part.
This is an incredibly stupid start to the new Congress, and badly undercuts President-elect Trump’s efforts to “drain the swamp.”
Media reports suggest that Speaker Paul Ryan opposed the move, but there have been reasons for skepticism about the House leadership’s commitment to OCE. It doesn’t matter what happened last night. It is now up to Ryan to save OCE. He must act with strength and decisiveness.
OCE was established in 2008 and is slightly more independent that the Ethics Committee because its board is comprised of former members of Congress and private citizens, rather than sitting members. OCE cannot sanction members but can only make referrals to the Ethics Committee.
Its role and importance were demonstrated in the Rep. Charles Rangel case. Without OCE, Rangel never would have been investigated.
I tagged along on a Rangel-led junket in November 2008 to sunny St. Maarten in the Caribbean. I snapped photos and made audio recordings evidencing that the event was underwritten by big corporations like Citigroup, in violation of House Rules. OCE took up the case, produced a detailed report based on my materials, and referred it to the Ethics Committee for action. The Ethics Committee “admonished” Rangel who was forced to resign his Ways and Means Chairmanship in the ensuing media swirl. Rangel would later be Censured by the entire house.
Of course, the Ethics Committee would have cleared Rangel if not for the initial media coverage of the trip generated by NLPC, and the subsequent media coverage of OCE’s report. One virtue of OCE is its ability to make public its investigative product, putting the House Ethics Committee on the spot. This is exactly why OCE has been targeted for extinction.
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We’d be in a world of hurt without the diligence of Judicial Watch.
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Amen to that, they’ve done stellar work regarding corruption in government.
Thx JW!!
Judicial Watch is truly doing, ‘The Lord’s Work.’
They are tireless, relentless and are a BLESSING to America.
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