Regarding House Schedule for Vote on Penalty for Rep. Gingrich
WASHINGTON-- "Last evening the Ethics Committee established the schedule for the presentation of the findings by Special Counsel James M. Cole and a response by counsel for Rep. Gingrich in regards to the ethics complaints filed against Mr. Gingrich.
The Final Report of the Committee concerning the matters covered during the Sanction Hearings will be prepared by Mr. Cole and transmitted to the House by February 4, 1997.
The Democrats on the Ethics Committee wish to make clear that while we have agreed on a schedule for the public hearings and the final report, we do not support the decision by the Republican House leadership to schedule a vote regarding penalties on January 21, well before the final report will be available to Members.
By proceeding with a vote on January 21, the Republican leadership is making an unreasonable request that Members make their judgement based on raw materials and transcripts that amount to two years of effort and thousands of pages of documents compiled by the Committee and the Special Counsel in this case.
On Tuesday, Mr. Cole and the members of the bipartisan investigative subcommittee requested additional time to complete its work beyond the January 21 deadline originally adopted by the full Committee. The Republican Leadership refused to grant the extension. This rejection of a request by a Special Counsel for more time to properly complete his work is unprecedented and absolutely without justification. The Majority also opposed a rules change that would have allowed the Ethics Committee to complete its investigation in a fair and orderly fashion.
The House Leadership should adhere to the timetable proposed by the Special Counsel and the bipartisan investigative subcommittee and permit a vote on this important matter only after members have had an opportunity to read the final report to be submitted by Mr. Cole by February 4.
Current Presss Releases
2010 |
2009 |
2008 |
2007 |
2006 |
2005 |
2004 |
2003
2002 |
2001 |
2000 |
1999 |
1998 |
1997 |
1996