Ethics Committee Makes Foley Scandal 'Highest Priority'

WASHINGTON, Oct. 5, 2006 — -- The House Ethics Committee's decision to launch an investigation into former Rep. Mark Foley's alleged electronic messages to pages marks a sharp change for a committee that had all but stopped functioning for much of the year.

It's also a sign of how seriously members are taking this scandal.

Members of the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct flew back to Washington to meet -- and then held a rare press conference to announce they had formed an investigative subcommittee to look into the Foley matter.

While they no longer have actual jurisdiction over Foley himself, since he has resigned, the investigation could include the actions of other House members, officers and staff. The new subcommittee, they added, has already unanimously agreed on nearly four dozen subpoenas.

While acknowledging that it's a "busy time" for lawmakers -- with midterm elections just one month away -- Rep. Doc Hastings, R-Wash., the chairman of the committee, said the subcommittee would have "no higher priority" in days ahead, adding that the investigators "will go wherever the evidence leads us."

Rep. Howard Berman of California, the ranking Democrat, characterized the time frame for the investigation by saying, "We are looking at weeks, not months."

It's a rare display of focus and urgency, given the committee's recent history. For 16 months, the House Ethics Committee was stymied by partisan gridlock and infighting, launching no new investigations until this past May, when it announced investigations into the scandals surrounding retiring Rep. Bob Ney, Rep. William Jefferson and former Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham.

Still, critics say the ethics committee has had such a poor track record that they doubt the investigation will be tough enough -- particularly when it comes to looking into the actions of the Republican leadership.

Many were calling for the committee to appoint an outside counsel to investigate, as was the case with the investigations into former speakers Jim Wright and Newt Gingrich. Watchdog groups today decried the decision to keep the investigation in-house.