CREW: SPEAKER BOEHNER’S WALK MUST MATCH HIS TALK

5 Jan 2011 //

The Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) will survive in its current form; the provision to save the OCE was included in the rules package for the 112^th Congress.  Since it was first established by Democrats in 2006, leaders from both parties have talked openly of gutting or killing the office. 

In response to the news, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) Executive Director Melanie Sloan issued the following statement:

"While keeping the OCE is important in the quest to build a better Washington, remember that it is only a step, and a symbolic one at that.  The OCE is currently leaderless, and the House Ethics Committee is a disaster.  How does Speaker Boehner plan to address these problems? There is clearly a lot of work to be done, and now is time for Speaker Boehner to ensure the American people that saving the OCE is his first action towards giving us all the Congress we deserve, not his last."

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Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) is a non-profit legal watchdog group dedicated to holding public officials accountable for their actions. For more information, please visit www.citizensforethics.org or contact Garrett Russo at 202.408.5565 or grusso@citizensforethics.org