Thursday’s unexpected announcement that the House ethics committee would begin a trial on ethics charges leveled against Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-N.Y.) came after a secret, months-long effort to settle the case fell apart, according to several sources close to the situation.
The negotiations were designed to avoid the extraordinary spectacle of a trial by his peers for Rangel, but they broke down when the parties in the discussions – Republicans and Democrats on the ethics committee, and Rangel himself – couldn’t reach an agreement.
Due the sensitive nature of the discussions, no one involved in the talks wanted to openly discuss them, but the conditions for a settlement included a public apology by Rangel for his ethical transgressions in exchange for lesser sanctions against the Harlem Democrat and an end to the case.
Republican aides said that Rangel faces the possibility of a formal reprimand by the House or possibly even a censure motion, although Democrats said it was premature to discuss what punishment will be recommended by the ethics committee.
One source close to Rangel suggested a compromise still may be reached next week, before the opening steps in the trial get underway.
Behind-the-scenes negotiations to settle the case between Rangel and Reps. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) and Jo Bonner (R-Ala.), the chairwoman and ranking member of the ethics committee, began in earnest in May, and continued into this week, said the sources.
But Rangel, Lofgren and Bonner, were unable to finalize a deal. Rangel was seen in an animated discussion with Lofgren on the House floor on Thursday morning, just hours before the ethics committee announced it would create an “adjudicatory committee” to evaluate the charges against Rangel. - Politico Story
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