This one needs a better name. Bribegate? That’s no good. I’m open to suggestion.
No matter what you call it, the investigation into the illegal bribes offered to Rep. Nick Smith (R-Mich.) on the House floor during the Medicare debate has reached the big time. The House Ethics Committee announced yesterday it will conduct a “full and complete inquiry” into the scandal.
The inquiry into Rep. Nick Smith’s allegations marks the first time in 20 months that the ethics panel has publicly announced such a “formal inquiry” into reports of questionable behavior by House members. Smith, who has never identified the lawmakers he said tried to influence his vote, promised to “cooperate fully with the inquiry.” He and the ethics panel — formally known as the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct — declined further comment.
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House Minority Whip Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.) said in a statement last night that a formal ethics inquiry into Smith’s claims is “the only way that the House can remove the cloud of suspicion that hangs over this matter to this day.”
Since Smith has contradicted himself at least twice in trying to back away from his initial complaints, I can’t wait to hear what he has to say under oath.