Pelosi "sympathetic" to undoing ethics rules

With Congress facing two trials of prominent Democratic Congressmen this fall, it isn't surprising that Democrats are thinking of changing House ethics rules. From the WSJ's Political Diary:

. . . Both Rep. Charles Rangel of New York and Rep. Maxine Waters of California face ethics charges, with Mr. Rangel being accused of improper fundraising and Ms. Waters with lobbying Treasury officials to bail out a bank in which her husband has a financial stake.

All of this has raised the ire of many Democrats. They accuse the independent Office of Congressional Ethics, which is largely composed of former members, of operating outside of its mandate and often targeting CBC members.

"A lot of people have been raising concerns [about the OCE], and I support them," House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn said last year. "At some point in the not-so-distant future, these concerns will have to be addressed." Sure enough, two months ago Ohio Democrat Marcia Fudge and 19 other members of the Congressional Black Caucus introduced legislation to reduce the office's powers to investigate wrongdoing.

But liberal voices are also being raised to warn Democrats against creating a perception that the party is reneging on its promise to clean up Congress. Speaker Nancy Pelosi famously said in 2008: "We have come here to drain the swamp." Yet now The Hill newspaper reports that she is sympathetic to Members who believe the OCE needs to be reined in. . . .