Thanks to Calls from Angry Constituents, Republicans Have Withdrawn Measure to Gut Ethics Committe

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8. Tweet to tweet around...."Offices were flooded with calls."-per GOP- Wow, you did it!

Thanks to Calls from Angry Constituents, Repubs Have Withdrawn Measure to Gut Ethics Committee http://demu.gr/10028427202 #p2 #uniteblue




@bpshow @msnbc "Offices were flooded with calls."-per GOP- Wow, you did it! https://www.buzzfeed.com/alexislevinson/house-republicans-flub-their-first-day-back?utm_term=.haARxj7yL#.ki8ykLQJ6 GIVE US FOLKS CREDIT


House Republicans Flub Their First Day Back



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In an unforced error, the House GOP quickly abandoned a rules change that would have stripped an independent ethics watchdog of power. “It was a stumble,” said Rep. Mark Sanford. “And, you know, probably not the way you want to start out.”
posted on Jan. 3, 2017, at 12:36 p.m.





WASHINGTON — The 115th congress had not yet been sworn in when House Republicans had their first screw up.

In a hastily called meeting Tuesday morning, House Republicans opted to get rid of a rule that would have effectively defanged the Office of Congressional Ethics.

The rule was passed in another closed-door meeting on Monday night and quickly devolved into a giant messaging problem for House Republicans. Just three weeks before swearing in a Republican president who had campaigned on “draining the swamp,” House Republicans appeared to have done exactly the opposite.

The move left House Republicans flailing even as their party prepares to take control of all the levers of power in Washington. Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy was peppered with questions about the rule during a meeting with reporters Tuesday morning, and at times seemed to express uncertainty over the exact details of what the rule would do. The majority leader even found himself fending off questions about whether or not House leadership was “weak,” as the rule had passed over the objections of both him and Speaker Paul Ryan.

Ryan appeared to defend the rule on Tuesday morning — before the conference met — saying in a statement: “I want to make clear that this House will hold its members to the highest ethical standards and the Office will continue to operate independently to provide public accountability to Congress.”

“Offices were getting flooded with calls” from constituents angry about the rule, according to one House Republican staffer. President-elect Donald Trump tweeted criticizing Republicans for making the move “their number one act and priority,” over other much-hyped GOP agenda items. Many members leaving the meeting said that Trump’s tweets had little to do with the move to kill the provision. McCarthy said he had spoken against the rule for exactly the reason Trump mentioned, telling reporters Tuesday morning, “I didn’t think this was the best timing.”

Several House Republicans were prepared to vote against the rules package in its entirety if the amendment affecting the Office of Congressional Ethics,

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