Democrats resist reform they promised

Washington Post:

Keeping momentum on ethics reforms is proving tough for House Democratic leaders, who are struggling to sell lawmakers on a proposal for overhauling House ethics enforcement, which is part of the party's pledge to improve accountability in Congress.

A week that began with the indictment of Rep. William J. Jefferson (D-La.) on bribery and racketeering charges ended on Friday with failure to forge Democratic consensus on plans for an independent ethics overseer, despite a sense of urgency among party leaders, lawmakers involved said.

As envisioned, the independent, bipartisan ethics panel would, for the first time in a decade, give non-lawmakers an avenue for lodging ethics complaints against lawmakers. The new panel would have no subpoena power and would leave enforcement action with the current committee. Even so, unveiling of the new committee has been repeatedly delayed, as proponents work to quell dissension.

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The panel would vet complaints and refer them to the existing ethics committee, with a recommendation on which allegations should be pursued, but its recommendations would be nonbinding.

"The legitimate danger people raise is that this becomes used for political purposes rather than what it's intended for," said a Democratic lawmaker involved. "We've got to find a mechanism for addressing those concerns."

One such mechanism under discussion would require the individual or group lodging a complaint to disclose background information, including funding sources, that would shed light on any political affiliations.

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I don't think the proposed reform would make that much difference. A couple of truisms give the answer to ethics. Honor is the gift you give to yourself. No one else can give it to you are take it from you. Integrity is what you do when no one is watching. If you have these two elements in hour heart you have no need for an ethics panel and if you don't, it want make a difference in your conduct. It might make a difference in how long it takes to catch you. At best it is a mechanism for congress to deter itself.