- 08/01/10 04:25 PM ET
Embattled New York congressman Charles Rangel (D) tweeted an audio message Sunday afternoon explaining to supporters the status of an action against him in the House ethics committee.
Rangel's message was as follows:
Hi, this is Congressman Charlie Rangel and I really wanted to take this opportunity just to bring a few facts to your attention.
As you know the Ethics Committee Procedure is underway and that I initiated it.
I hope that the Ethics Committee process will move forward without a rush to judgment.
I've discovered some of the mistakes I've made [unintelligible] and my answers to the allegations can be found on my website at www.rangel.house.gov.
I really believe that I've made some difference in the Congress and I just won't stop fighting until I've had a fair and open hearing.
So, thank you for the support and I won't let you down.Two hours beforehand, he had tweeted the link to a 32-page PDF document signed by his lawyers that addresses the charges leveled by the committee on Thursday. "The undisputed evidence in the record — assembled by the Investigative Subcommittee over its nearly two-year investigation — is that Congressman Rangel did not dispense any political favors, that he did not intentionally violate any law, rule or regulation, and that he did not misuse his public office for private gain," the statement reads. The investigation and subsequent charges against Rangel — who has served nearly 40 years in the House — may be troublesome for his Democratic colleagues in the coming election cycle as they try to sell the party's credibility on government ethics, an issue where they led Republicans as of July 1. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Sunday on ABC's "This Week" that Rangel's fate in Congress was a matter for the ethics committee. "When I came in, I said we're 'draining the swamp.' And we did. We have passed the most sweeping ethics reform in the history of the Congress. Any personal respect and affection we may have for people makes us sad about the course of events, but we have to pull the high ethical standard and none of our personalities is more important than that," she said.
- 08/01/10 04:25 PM ET
Rangel's message was as follows:
Hi, this is Congressman Charlie Rangel and I really wanted to take this opportunity just to bring a few facts to your attention.
As you know the Ethics Committee Procedure is underway and that I initiated it.
I hope that the Ethics Committee process will move forward without a rush to judgment.
I've discovered some of the mistakes I've made [unintelligible] and my answers to the allegations can be found on my website at www.rangel.house.gov.
I really believe that I've made some difference in the Congress and I just won't stop fighting until I've had a fair and open hearing.
So, thank you for the support and I won't let you down.
As you know the Ethics Committee Procedure is underway and that I initiated it.
I hope that the Ethics Committee process will move forward without a rush to judgment.
I've discovered some of the mistakes I've made [unintelligible] and my answers to the allegations can be found on my website at www.rangel.house.gov.
I really believe that I've made some difference in the Congress and I just won't stop fighting until I've had a fair and open hearing.
So, thank you for the support and I won't let you down.
Two hours beforehand, he had tweeted the link to a 32-page PDF document signed by his lawyers that addresses the charges leveled by the committee on Thursday.
"The undisputed evidence in the record — assembled by the Investigative Subcommittee over its nearly two-year investigation — is that Congressman Rangel did not dispense any political favors, that he did not intentionally violate any law, rule or regulation, and that he did not misuse his public office for private gain," the statement reads.
The investigation and subsequent charges against Rangel — who has served nearly 40 years in the House — may be troublesome for his Democratic colleagues in the coming election cycle as they try to sell the party's credibility on government ethics, an issue where they led Republicans as of July 1.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Sunday on ABC's "This Week" that Rangel's fate in Congress was a matter for the ethics committee.
"When I came in, I said we're 'draining the swamp.' And we did. We have passed the most sweeping ethics reform in the history of the Congress. Any personal respect and affection we may have for people makes us sad about the course of events, but we have to pull the high ethical standard and none of our personalities is more important than that," she said.
White House backs ethics proceedings against Rangel
- 07/30/10 07:39 AM ET
The White House stressed the need Friday for the ethics process to proceed in due course against fellow Democratic Rep. Charlie Rangel (N.Y.).
White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said the administration believed in letting ethics proceedings go forward against Rangel, who was formally charged on Thursday with 13 charges by the bipartisan House Ethics Committee.
"There's a bipartisan committee looking into some very serious charges," Gibbs said during an interview on NBC's "Today" show. "We think that's the right step to take."
The administration has been largely silent so far on the charges against Rangel, which Democrats concerned their precarious election-year situation could be worsened further with a messy ethics trial. Gibbs deflected most questions on Thursday about the case during his daily press briefing. Democrats swept into power in Congress in 2006 in part due to Republicans' own ethics problems while in control of the House and Senate.
"I feel confident that this party and this president have a record on ethics reform that we're happy to put before the American people in November," Gibbs said on ABC's "Good Morning America."
There had been talk of Rangel cutting a deal with the ethics panel on Thursday, as some House Democrats called for his resignation. But Gibbs said that President Obama and other White House officials have stayed out of the process, and that it was up to Rangel and no one else to decide whether or not to strike a deal on the charges.
"That's not for us to decide," the press secretary explained on NBC. "That's for Congressman Rangel to decide."
Gibbs said that Obama and other top administration officials haven't spoken to Rangel about the charges.
White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said the administration believed in letting ethics proceedings go forward against Rangel, who was formally charged on Thursday with 13 charges by the bipartisan House Ethics Committee.
"There's a bipartisan committee looking into some very serious charges," Gibbs said during an interview on NBC's "Today" show. "We think that's the right step to take."
The administration has been largely silent so far on the charges against Rangel, which Democrats concerned their precarious election-year situation could be worsened further with a messy ethics trial. Gibbs deflected most questions on Thursday about the case during his daily press briefing. Democrats swept into power in Congress in 2006 in part due to Republicans' own ethics problems while in control of the House and Senate.
"I feel confident that this party and this president have a record on ethics reform that we're happy to put before the American people in November," Gibbs said on ABC's "Good Morning America."
There had been talk of Rangel cutting a deal with the ethics panel on Thursday, as some House Democrats called for his resignation. But Gibbs said that President Obama and other White House officials have stayed out of the process, and that it was up to Rangel and no one else to decide whether or not to strike a deal on the charges.
"That's not for us to decide," the press secretary explained on NBC. "That's for Congressman Rangel to decide."
Gibbs said that Obama and other top administration officials haven't spoken to Rangel about the charges.
No comments:
Post a Comment