Rangel Won’t Resign His Chairmanship
[Guest post by DRJ]
House Ways and Means Chairman Charles Rangel (D-NY) has resisted calls that he step down as chair following a House ethics committee admonishment for lobbyist-paid trips to the Caribbean. Now Rangel claims the admonishment actually exonerated him:
“Rangel said lawmakers “will be blind-sided with ethics problems” if they’re held accountable for everything known to their staff members. Rangel called the committee’s findings “ill-considered, unprecedented, unfair.”
The committee said that while it could not prove that Rangel did or did not see the communications, he was responsible for the actions of his staff.
Rangel on Friday brushed off the panel’s criticism and focused on its inability to prove whether he knew about the corporate sponsorship. “Clearly the wording exonerates me,” he told reporters.
He said he didn’t even have “constructive knowledge” of the corporate sponsorship of the trips and couldn’t be held responsible for something staff members may have known but which he didn’t.
Asked if he planned to remain committee chairman in light of the admonishment, Rangel responded: “Why don’t you ask me am I’m going to stay chairman of the committee in light of the fact that we’re expecting heavy snow in New York?” He said that would be just as relevant.”
More ethics complaints are pending against Rangel and, in related news, more snow is expected in New York tomorrow.
— DRJ
Rangel is a cheap pimp unlike the expensive pimp Obambi is.
HeavenSent (c3c032) — 2/27/2010 @ 3:37 pmMore evidence of what a load of crap Pelosi’s “most ethical congress” is.
SPQR (26be8b) — 2/27/2010 @ 3:39 pmThe Field Negro, a liberal Philadelphia blogger, has a lot of disdain for what were called “house Negroes,” as described in this (almost nine minute) youtube from Malcolm X, wrote:
The Dana who finds these things (474dfc) — 2/27/2010 @ 3:42 pmIt seems ironic that the Ethics Committee would bust him on this, given all of the passes he has gotten from them.
JD (726fb0) — 2/27/2010 @ 4:11 pmOfficer Cardillo, etc, etc…
Gazzer (fe2281) — 2/27/2010 @ 4:13 pmPerhaps he can go visit his good friend Fidel Castro, for a little sympathetic succor.
T-minus ??? until race card is drawn.
GeneralMalaise (c58b20) — 2/27/2010 @ 4:13 pmWho are those staff members and what is their status now?
Amphipolis (17a9b7) — 2/27/2010 @ 4:31 pmThursday’s article said the staff member “he blamed for the mistakes” had been fired. I don’t know about anyone else.
DRJ (daa62a) — 2/27/2010 @ 5:21 pmHow does he get anyone to work for him?
Have they all been subjected to Stockholm Syndrome?
MU789 (a05870) — 2/27/2010 @ 5:54 pmHow does he get anyone to work for him?
The same way they kept the guy in the circus whose job was to sweep up after the elephants:
AD - RtR/OS! (7d5017) — 2/27/2010 @ 5:57 pmWhat, give up show business!