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Six of the 10 House Ethics Committee members have recused themselves from a probe into whether Rep. Maxine Waters helped secure government assistance for a bank in which her husband owned shares.
February 17
WASHINGTON — The House Ethics Committee will hold a public meeting Friday morning "in the matter of Rep. Maxine Waters," according to a Thursday press release.
The release did not elaborate on why the hearing is being held, but the California Democrat has been under investigation by the committee for allegedly using her position to steer federal bailout money to OneUnited, a minority-owned bank in Boston with which her husband had financial ties. She was charged with violating House rules and the ethics code for government employees in June 2010.
Waters has fought the charges, arguing repeatedly that staff lawyers violated House rules themselves during the course of the investigation. She's also raised questions about bias on the committee against her.
Acting committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., and acting ranking member John Yarmuth, D-Ky., called the hearing.
A spokeswoman for Goodlatte did not respond immediately to a request for comment.
