Senate

Senate Dems blast House GOP over ethics moves

by Jordain Carney - 01/03/17 11:39 AM ET

Senate Democrats are tearing into the House GOP’s plan to overhaul an independent ethics office, warning it’s a sign of what to come under a unified Republican government.

“In hint of what’s to come, 1st act of Trump’s Congress is to gut ethics law, make corruption easier to hide,” Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) — a vocal critic of President-Elect Donald Trump — tweeted Tuesday.

Here’s how it’s working: (1) billionaires take over government (2) ethics laws get gutted (3) billionaires get richer.

— Chris Murphy (@ChrisMurphyCT) January 3, 2017

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) added that voters should get ready for a “special interests bonanza.”

{mosads}House Republicans voted late Monday to move forward with a proposal weakening the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE). The amendment, sponsored by Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), would put it under the oversight of the House Ethics Committee.

The full House is currently scheduled to vote on the change, as part of a larger rules package, on Tuesday afternoon. But the move has drawn criticism from Democrats, as well as Trump, who questioned whether House Republicans should be making the ethics reform their first move.

{mosads}Senate Democrats added Tuesday that the decision undercut Trump’s pledge to “drain the swamp” during his administration.

“1st order of ‘business’ for #GOP: vote in secret to gut independent ethics panel. So much for draining the swamp,” Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) said on Twitter.

Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), a member of Democratic leadership, called the House GOP move “unbelievable.”

Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) added that both parties need to focus on ethics in order to fulfill Trump’s campaign pledge.

Republicans promised to “drain the swamp” Now it looks like they just want to hide it! Undoing the independent ethics office? Unbelievable!

— Sen. Debbie Stabenow (@SenStabenow) January 3, 2017

How do you #DrainTheSwamp when you keep building dams? Ethics must be a priority for both parties. https://t.co/42BYjRdPp8

— Senator Bob Casey (@SenBobCasey) January 3, 2017

House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) defended the move on Tuesday morning, noting he has stressed that the House Ethics Committee shouldn’t prevent the ethics office from doing its job.

“All members of Congress are required to earn the public’s trust every single day, and this House will hold members accountable to the people,” he said.

Goodlatte wrote separately on Tuesday that his amendment “strengthens” OCE while also bolstering due process for lawmakers.

The growing backlash from Senate Democrats came after Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) blasted House Republicans on Monday night. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) also argued on Monday night that Republicans were breaking their “party promise” to tighten ethics rules.