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Politics : BuSab -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: grusum who wrote (5367)	11/16/2010 11:48:42 AM
From: Alan Smithee	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 23934

One of the world's great lies: "I'm from the government and I'm here to help you."

To: grusum who wrote (5367)	11/16/2010 1:45:27 PM
From: joseffy	Respond to of 23934

House ethics panel convicts Rep. Rangel on 11 of 13 counts .......................................................... By Susan Crabtree and Jordan Fabian - 11/16/10 thehill.com A House ethics panel has convicted Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-N.Y.) on 11 of 13 counts of violating House ethics rules. Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), the chairwoman of the adjudicatory subcommittee and the full House ethics committee, announced the decision late Tuesday morning following an abbreviated public trial of the 20-term lawmaker and nearly six hours of deliberations. "We have tried to act with fairness, led only by the facts and the law," Lofgren said. "We believe we have accomplished that mission." The full ethics panel will now convene a sanctions hearing to recommend a punishment. Serious sanctions — including formal reprimand, censure or expulsion — require a vote on the House floor. Expulsion requires a two-thirds vote, while a reprimand, which Rangel refused to agree to in July, or a censure would need just a simple majority. The ethics panel could also impose a fine and diminish some of Rangel’s privileges. Asked if he had any reaction to the panel's decision, Rangel initally told reporters, "Nope, none." The congressman said he did not know if there is an appeals process at this point and added that he first saw the ruling on television. In an official statement, Rangel slammed the ethics subcommittee's "unprecedented" decision, saying his due process rights were violated since the panel ruled without him having legal representation. "How can anyone have confidence in the decision of the ethics subcommittee when I was deprived of due process rights, right to counsel and was not even in the room?" Rangel said. "I can only hope that the full committee will treat me more fairly, and take into account my entire 40 years of service to the Congress before making any decisions on sanction." The congressman did not indicate he would seek to appeal the decision saying, "While I am required to accept the findings of the Ethics Committee, I am compelled to state again the unfairness of its continuation without affording me the opportunity to obtain legal counsel as guaranteed under the U.S. Constitution." The decision comes one day after the panel rejected an emotional plea by Rangel to delay the trial because he lacked counsel. Rangel’s team of attorneys told him they could no longer represent him in mid-October, and Rangel said he could not afford to hire a replacement right away after incurring nearly $2 million in legal fees over the past two years. The 13 counts stem from several House ethics violations, including improperly using his office to solicit donations for a school of public policy in his name at the City College of New York, using a residential apartment in Harlem for his campaign office, failing to report more than $600,000 on his financial disclosure report and failing to pay taxes on rental income from a villa he owns in the Dominican Republic. Melanie Sloan, the executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, applauded the decision and called on Rangel to resign. "All of Mr. Rangel's theatrics aside, the facts were clear: Mr. Rangel violated numerous House rules and federal laws," she said. "Whether these violations were deliberate or inadvertent, the American people deserve to be represented by members of Congress who adhere to the highest ethical standards. Mr. Rangel should resign."