Even Jack Abramoff Says GOP Attempt To Gut Ethics Office Was A Bad Idea
By CAITLIN MACNEAL Published JANUARY 3, 2017, 12:34 PM EDT
Jack Abramoff, the former lobbyist whose sprawling corruption case helped prompt the creation of the Office of Congressional Ethics, on Tuesday bashed House Republicans' short-lived attempt to weaken the office.
"While there seems to be little question that some of the procedures of the Office of Congressional Ethics can and probably have created collateral political problems for innocent Members of Congress, moving to diminish oversight is exactly the opposite of what Congress should be doing," Abramoff told Politico before House Republicans pulled the measure.
House Republicans reversed course mid-day Tuesday and pulled the amendment that weakened the ethics office. The reversal came less than 24 hours after the House Republican Conference on Monday night voted to make changes to the Office of Congressional Ethics. The new rules would place the office under the House Ethic's Committee oversight. The ethics office will no longer be able to act on anonymous tips and will not be able to make public statements or refer investigations to a prosecutor without the permission of the House Ethics Committee.
The late-night vote behind closed doors prompted swift backlash as Republicans tried to defend the move.
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