Understanding politics and how our government operates, that’s the point of this column. Trying to understand the United States Constitution, that’s the foundation of this nation. Or I should say, it is supposed to be the foundation of this nation and how Americans live, and how we operate in a Democratic society.
We have laws and rules and we’re supposed to abide by them. None of us are supposed to be “above the law.”
Ironically over the last 4 years, it seems that the U.S. Constitution was challenged many times to the benefit of certain lawmakers. Even as I wrote this column, the U.S. Constitution is being strained because there are still those who are arguing that it is not constitutional to Impeach a President, for example, once they’ve left office. But guess what? That train has already left the station and the impeachment trial of President number 45, Donald Trump in the U.S. Senate begins today.
On February 4, 2021, Democrats sent a request to Trump, asking him to come and testify at the impeachment trial. Trump’s response was not known at the deadline for this column. My guess is if his attorneys are as savvy as I think they are, he will say no. In my humble opinion, if Trump takes the stand to testify, he’ll sink his own ship. He’s overly cocky, everybody knows that. Donald Trump thinks he’s the “smartest man on earth.” Democratic Senators can get Trump to fumble the ball, so-to-speak if he were to take the stand and testify.
Meanwhile, what to do with (R) U.S. Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a huge Donald Trump fan who’s been misbehaving terribly? As things turned out on Thursday, February 4th, a very split U.S. House of Congress ultimately voted to take both of Greene’s Committee assignments away from her. The vote was 230-199. Democrats say she earned that punishment because of the hateful violent conspiracy theories and rhetoric she’s been spreading for months.
At the eleventh hour, Congresswoman Greene took to the floor in her own defense Thursday, trying to “change her crazy conspiracy stories around,” like certain lies and rhetoric she hadn’t said. But she did say these things, and it’s all on tape. She actually stood up on the House floor and contradicted things she said in the past, in the recent past mind you, about 911 attacks and mass school shootings. In the past, she said these things were not real. Thursday she said they are real. Greene was taken off the Education and Labor, and Budget Committees. Committee assignments are crucial for lawmakers for shaping legislation affecting their districts, creating a national reputation and raising campaign contributions, so this punishment can hurt Greene to some degree. There’s still a rumbling in Washington where some lawmakers feel she needs to be impeached.
Government ethics rules exist to promote and enforce the proper conduct of public officials and to maintain public confidence in the government. All three branches of the federal government have offices that oversee the ethical conduct of elected officials, officers, and employees. The U.S. Office of Government Ethics covers the executive branch; the Judicial Conference’s Code of Conduct and its Committee on Codes of Conduct cover the judicial branch.
In Congress, the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives have separate ethics rules and enforcement mechanisms. The Senate Select Committee on Ethics deals with ethics matters there. In the House, the Committee on Ethics and the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) have a responsibility regarding alleged ethical violations by House Members, officers, and employees. The OCE is a non-partisan, independent entity established by the House in 2008 to conduct initial reviews of allegations of misconduct and when warranted, refer matters to the Committee on Ethics, which has exclusive jurisdiction to find violations and impose punishment. The Committee on Ethics can also initiate its own investigation without a referral from OCE.
The House Committee on Ethics is a standing committee of the House and has authority over the interpretation, administration, and enforcement of the Code of Official Conduct for the House of Representatives. The Committee educates Members, officers, and congressional staff on House ethics rules and has the responsibility to investigate and sanction violations of these rules. The Committee accepts complaints about Members only from other Members.
The membership of the Committee on Ethics is divided evenly by party, with five Republicans, including the Chair, and five Democrats. The rules and procedures governing the work of the Committee are public.
Here is some wording from the Rules of The House of Representatives as it relates to Congressperson’s Code of Official Conduct.
There is hereby established by and for the House the following code of conduct, to be known as the “Code of Official Conduct:” A Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee of the House shall behave at all times in a manner that shall reflect creditably on the House. A Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee of the House shall adhere to the spirit and the letter of the Rules of the House and to the rules of duly constituted committees thereof.
