Democrats established the independent Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) in 2008 after a flood of scandals and resignations by members of Congress — mostly Republicans, but also a Democrat. Republicans are now trying to gut it, perhaps in an effort to make corruption great again. MSNBC Host and Citizen Board Member Ali Velshi takes us through the history of the OCE — and why it’s such a bad idea to weaken it.
After a year full of Congressional scandal and criminal indictments — remember Duke Cunningham? Tom Delay? Tom Foley? Jack Abramoff? — in 2006, the Democrats established the Office of Congressional Ethics. The OCE the nonpartisan, independent entity that reviews allegations of misconduct by members of the House of Representatives. When appropriate, the board will refer investigations to the House Committee on Ethics to further review.
Since its inception, the Office of Congressional Ethics has been under threat by Republicans trying to abolish it in order to avoid independent scrutiny. This year, two years after the January 6 insurrection, in which some House Republicans have been implicated, is no different.
The House Republican rules package includes several clauses that would rein in the OCE and make it more difficult for it to do its job.
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