Finally, Maxine Waters is being investigated by the House Ethics Committee. The California Representative, who serves on the House Financial Services Committee, has been accused of inappropriately accessing federal bailout funds for a bank in which she and her husband have a substantial financial interest. It took months for Congress to respond to the charges of blatant self-dealing, despite Nancy Pelosi’s promise that ethics charges would be dealt with promptly.
This is not the first time Waters has landed on the griddle. In fact, her presence on a list of 15 most corrupt members of Congress this year is her third such honor.
Ms. Waters is hardly alone in abusing the power of her office. The report out last week from the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) detailing the peccadilloes of our elected officials was noteworthy not for its revelations of dishonest practices, but for the yawns which greeted it. Somewhere along the line, the American people gave up demanding honesty from their representatives, and that is a national tragedy. The last time someone asked, 40% of Americans said they consider used-car salesmen more ethical than members of Congress.
Low expectations held by voters are certainly part of the problem here. So, however, is a lack of confidence that Congress will police its own. Here’s a suggestion: open the doors and let Americans witness the workings of the House Ethics Committee. If being stripped naked and flayed in full view of your countrymen is the appropriate way to investigate Ed Liddy, a decent man trying (for free) to safeguard the taxpayers’ interest in AIG – why isn’t it the best way to question New York’s Charles Rangel about his real estate holdings, or to ask Nevada’s John Ensign about his alleged payments to his former paramour? Why do the ethics committees of both the House and the Senate operate in such luxurious secrecy while members of Congress get to preen before C-SPAN as they excoriate Fed Chair Ben Bernanke or Morgan Stanley CEO John Mack? Just as Congress seems to have the sweetest deal on health insurance, they also get a free pass on accountability. My guess is that one or two open-door hearings into dishonest tax accounting or improper payoffs would do a lot to clean up Washington. At the least, it would be highly entertaining.
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This is not the first time Waters has landed on the griddle. In fact, her presence on a list of 15 most corrupt members of Congress this year is her third such honor.
Ms. Waters is hardly alone in abusing the power of her office. The report out last week from the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) detailing the peccadilloes of our elected officials was noteworthy not for its revelations of dishonest practices, but for the yawns which greeted it. Somewhere along the line, the American people gave up demanding honesty from their representatives, and that is a national tragedy. The last time someone asked, 40% of Americans said they consider used-car salesmen more ethical than members of Congress.
Low expectations held by voters are certainly part of the problem here. So, however, is a lack of confidence that Congress will police its own. Here’s a suggestion: open the doors and let Americans witness the workings of the House Ethics Committee. If being stripped naked and flayed in full view of your countrymen is the appropriate way to investigate Ed Liddy, a decent man trying (for free) to safeguard the taxpayers’ interest in AIG – why isn’t it the best way to question New York’s Charles Rangel about his real estate holdings, or to ask Nevada’s John Ensign about his alleged payments to his former paramour? Why do the ethics committees of both the House and the Senate operate in such luxurious secrecy while members of Congress get to preen before C-SPAN as they excoriate Fed Chair Ben Bernanke or Morgan Stanley CEO John Mack? Just as Congress seems to have the sweetest deal on health insurance, they also get a free pass on accountability. My guess is that one or two open-door hearings into dishonest tax accounting or improper payoffs would do a lot to clean up Washington. At the least, it would be highly entertaining.
More Here
