House lawmakers strip Jefferson of panel seat

updated 11:42 p.m. ET June 16, 2006

WASHINGTON - The House voted Friday to take away besieged Rep. William Jefferson’s committee seat, then dispatched its own lawyers to join him in court to seek the return of documents seized in a federal bribery probe.

Both the political punishment and the legal case appeared to be without precedent. Jefferson has not been charged with a crime, and officials said last month’s FBI search of his congressional office was a first.

The events marked the latest turns in a controversy with legal, political and racial elements, all centering on the 59-year-old, eighth-term lawmaker from New Orleans.

Two men have been convicted as part of the bribery scandal surrounding Jefferson. And while the congressman has not been charged, the FBI says it found $90,000 in bribe money stashed in a food freezer in his home.

An ethical standard
House Democratic leaders pushed for his Ways and Means Committee assignment to be taken away. Nancy Pelosi, the party’s House leader, has said repeatedly that Democrats will be held to the highest possible ethical standards, while she and others in her party accuse Republicans of nurturing a “culture of corruption.”

“Mr. Jefferson has legal issues that he and his family must deal with. Mrs. Pelosi has political issues that she and her caucus must deal with,” said Rep. James Clyburn of South Carolina, chairman of the Democratic caucus.

His remarks reflected the political forces at work — an attempt by Pelosi, D-Calif., to make ethics a campaign issue in a Democratic bid to win control of the House this fall.

Jefferson, who maintains his innocence and has criticized Pelosi for her action, had no comment on the vote by fellow lawmakers. He was present during the few seconds it took for the House to act, having been involved in a huddled conversation with fellow members of the Congressional Black Caucus who argue he is being treated unfairly.

Clyburn did not want vote
Under House rules, any lawmaker could have sought a roll call vote that would have required all members of the House to make their positions known publicly.

None did.

Clyburn told reporters afterward that most members of the Congressional Black Caucus did not want a vote, despite their accusation that Pelosi was subjecting Jefferson to a sanction without a rule or precedent to justify it.

The CBC issued a statement last week saying Jefferson was entitled to a constitutional presumption of innocence.

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