Most committee appointments should be allowed to go through without comment or controversy. However, one placing a corrupt congressman with a history of using one of the agencies he will supervise to help cover up his crimes mandates placing every member of the House of Representatives on the record.

House Republicans plan to force a floor vote on the appointment of Rep. William J. Jefferson (D-La.), who is the subject of a federal bribery investigation, to a seat on the Homeland Security Committee.

The decision to put Jefferson on the panel was made by Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Calif.), and House Democrats endorsed the move at a private meeting Tuesday night, but his appointment must be confirmed by a vote on the House floor. Such an action would normally be a formality, but Republicans said yesterday that they would pursue a rarely used maneuver to force a recorded vote on the matter.

"This is a terrible mistake by the Democratic leadership, to take someone with serious ethical allegations against him and put him on one of the most sensitive and important committees in Congress," said Rep. Peter T. King (N.Y.), the ranking Republican on the committee.

Remember, this is the same William Jefferson who commandeered emergency equipment and personnel to remove personal property -- including evidence in the criminal probe against him -- from his New Orleans home in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, while people still needed rescuing. This appointment will give him oversight responsibilities for FEMA. While I agree that a New Orleans area official belongs on the committee, it cannot be this one.

Posted by: Greg at 11:32 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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