GOP Conference chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers faces possible ethics inquiry
By John Bresnahan and Jake Sherman, February 6, 2014
GOP Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers faces a possible House Ethics Committee investigation over allegations by a former staffer that she improperly mixed campaign and official funds to help win a 2012 House leadership race.
The Office of Congressional Ethics has recommended that the Ethics Committee conduct a full probe into the case. The Ethics Committee announced on Thursday that it will continuing [sic] reviewing the allegations until March 23. At that point, ethics will have to appoint a special investigative subcommittee to conduct a full-scale probe, or drop the case and publicly release OCE’s report. OCE originally forwarded its recommendation to the Ethics Committee shortly before the Christmas holiday.
McMorris Rodgers, the House GOP Conference chairwoman, has denied the allegations and has fully cooperated with OCE investigators, including taking part in an interview by OCE staff.
“As has become an unfortunate rite of passage for many members of Congress, the OCE regularly refers matters to the House Ethics Committee for further review. Such reviews are virtually automatic, and as the committee always points out, does not indicate that any violation has occurred, or reflect any judgment on behalf of the committee,” said Elliot Berke, McMorris Rodgers’s attorney, in a statement. Berke is with the law firm McGuireWoods.
“The congresswoman and her office cooperated fully with the OCE during its inquiry and have already begun assisting the committee with its review. We are confident that the committee will ultimately find that the allegations were baseless and that her office always followed all laws, rules and standards of conduct.”
The Republican from Washington state has had a higher profile since delivering the GOP response to President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address last week.
Sources close to McMorris Rodgers say OCE began its review of McMorris Rodgers after a former aide alleged that she improperly commingled campaign and official dollars during her leadership race against Rep. Tom Price of Georgia — a former chairman of the Republican Study Committee — to take over as House GOP Conference chair.
“The complaint to the OCE was made by a former disgruntled employee, Todd Winer, who was terminated from the office with cause after [McMorris Rodgers] became Conference chair, and she decided not to choose him for the communications director position at Conference,” said a source familiar with the inquiry.
Under House rules, a member can use campaign funds to defray the costs of a leadership race, such as a promotional video or other materials. A lawmaker can also use official staff on such races. But official and campaign funds can’t be mixed.
McMorris Rodgers’s aides insist she scrupulously adhered to House rules during her leadership races and consulted repeatedly with the administration and ethics panels over what was allowed.
Although they didn’t endorse her publicly, members of the House Republican leadership and their allies worked on behalf of McMorris Rodgers as the party was wary of not having a woman in its top ranks. McMorris Rodgers prevailed by a narrow margin with several sources pegging the difference at fewer than five votes.
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