The New York Times editorial board usually occupies a position in American politics just slightly to the right of Code Pink, so when they take up a cause championed by Jeff Flake, it’s newsworthy.  The Gray Lady scolds Nancy Pelosi for blocking efforts to conduct an ethics investigation into the connections that the PMA Group had in the House, including with Democratic heavyweights John Murtha and Pete Visclosky.  The editors just can’t bring themselves to credit Flake while doing so, though:

Speaker Nancy Pelosi should listen to the wise Democrats who are pushing for an ethics inquiry into the far-too-cozy relationship between lawmakers and the PMA Group of superlobbyists.

Which “wise Democrats” would that be?  Flake has had to submit a bill six times just to get 25 Democrats to join him; originally he only had four. “The wise Democrats” make it sound as though Flake’s 25 comprise all the wisdom of the House Democratic Caucus.  Well, okay, they may be right about that …

Beyond the criminal investigation, the House needs to look into any violations of its own ethics rules. And the Democrats need to deliver on their party’s ethics promises — and more and more of them know it.

Yeah, so far, 25 of them know it.  But the Times is right about the House taking care of it themselves, especially since Nancy Pelosi joined in a lawsuit to keep the FBI from using material seized from William “Dollar Bill” Jefferson a few years ago.  She explicitly argued that the House had jurisdiction in these cases.  If that’s the case, then Pelosi needs to exercise it.

Ms. Pelosi cannot ignore this sorry churn of taxpayer money.

She’s been ignoring it for over two years now.

Newcomers and moderates are right in warning that if the House majority doesn’t police itself, it will lose credibility all the way to the next election.

“Newcomers and moderates”, but not Flake and the Republicans?  Does the Times actually pay correspondents to report from Washington any longer?  Maybe they can just start reading The Hill.

I’m glad to see the Times’ belated effort to find accountability for Democratic corruption … after the election.