{"id":36226,"date":"2023-01-14T11:16:16","date_gmt":"2023-01-14T11:16:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/?p=36226"},"modified":"2023-01-14T11:16:16","modified_gmt":"2023-01-14T11:16:16","slug":"view-from-away-mccarthys-house-rules-could-weaken-ethics-oversight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/2023\/01\/14\/view-from-away-mccarthys-house-rules-could-weaken-ethics-oversight\/","title":{"rendered":"View from Away: McCarthy\u2019s House rules could weaken ethics oversight"},"content":{"rendered":"

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After Kevin McCarthy was elected speaker of the House by his fellow Republicans last week \u2014 on the 15th ballot<\/a> and after making concessions<\/a> to hard-right members of his party \u2014 he offered a rosy preview of Republican control. The speaker said that under his leadership the House would end \u201cwasteful Washington spending,\u201d improve the lot of Americans and provide a check on the Biden administration.<\/p>\n

In its first moves the Republican-led House has taken some steps to make the legislative process more transparent, such as requiring a 72-hour period in which members can review the content of legislation before it can be voted on.<\/p>\n

However, the House has also moved to make it harder to investigate corruption by its members. Moreover, rather than simply conducting robust oversight of the Biden administration, House Republicans seem intent on launching blatantly partisan investigations<\/a> that could undermine the intelligence community and the criminal justice system.<\/p>\n

On Monday, the House approved a package of rules changes that, along with other assurances, allowed McCarthy to win the backing of hard-liners in his party. The rules will dictate House procedures for the next two years while Republicans hold the majority.<\/p>\n

But the package also includes some bad moves, including changes in the operation of the Office of Congressional Ethics<\/a>, an independent body that can make recommendations to the House Ethics Committee about members suspected of unethical conduct.<\/p>\n

The changes might seem technical, but could have the effect of hamstringing the ethics office. They impose term limits on members of the office\u2019s board and require that staff be hired within 30 days of the rule\u2019s adoption. The term-limit rule will force three of the four Democratic appointees on the board to leave immediately, creating vacancies that will take time to fill \u2013 and could well stay unfilled for long periods. The hiring time limit sets an unnecessary deadline for which there is no good reason. Also, as good-government groups have pointed out, it could make it more difficult for the office to thoroughly assess applicants for staff positions and prevent filling vacancies that occur later during this Congress.<\/p>\n

Taken together, these provisions threaten to halt the work of the ethics office. That is hardly consistent with McCarthy\u2019s stated commitment to a \u201cgovernment that is held accountable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Accountability is also the supposed justification for a proposed special subcommittee of the Judiciary Committee approved Tuesday that will investigate the \u201cweaponization of the federal government<\/a>.\u201d In his victory speech McCarthy said: \u201cWe will hold the swamp accountable, from the withdrawal of Afghanistan, to the origins of COVID and to the weaponization of the FBI.\u201d<\/p>\n

Of course, Congress has the right to provide oversight of the Justice Department and the intelligence community. But this panel, which is expected to be headed by Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, an Ohio Republican and Donald Trump ally, seems aimed not at responsible oversight but at creating a House venue for spewing the tired MAGA talking point that Americans \u2013 especially Trump \u2013 are being victimized by a runaway \u201cdeep state\u201d for political ends. What else can \u201cweaponization\u201d mean?<\/p>\n

Ominously, the resolution proposing creation of the panel includes \u201congoing criminal investigations\u201d in its description of its authority. Would that mission encompass attempts by the panel \u2014 which the Justice Department should resist \u2013 to meddle in the current special counsel investigation<\/a> of Trump\u2019s possession of government documents after he left office? (The Justice Department also is reviewing the seemingly less significant retention of a smaller number of documents found in Biden\u2019s office<\/a> after he left the vice presidency.)<\/p>\n

McCarthy, who thanked Trump<\/a> profusely for his help in securing the speakership, needs to ensure that the House doesn\u2019t become merely another stage for the former president or wholly controlled by the group led by Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., that successfully held McCarthy hostage to their demands. But that would mean antagonizing some of these forces<\/a> on which his continued tenure depends. The prospects of his doing so seem very slim.<\/p>\n

Editorial by the Los Angeles Times<\/em><\/p>\n

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