The House Ethics Committee is meeting today to hold a public "trial" for one of their own members. Florida Democratic congresswoman Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick could be removed from her seat if her colleagues decide she used federal relief funds to run for office.
The hearing concerns its investigation into Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, D-Fla., who was indicted on charges she stole millions in federal relief funds and used the money to bankroll her congressional campaign.
The congresswoman has consistently denied the allegations of wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty to the charges. Her office did not immediately respond Thursday to a request for comment.
Such Ethics meetings are typically conducted in private. But the committee has decided to bring this issue out into the open — the House’s version of a court trial — due to the fact that she has decided to fight the allegations rather than resign, and the ethics case is moving faster than the judicial system.
Rep. Cherfilus-McCormick hasn't been convicted by a court but there is plenty of evidence of misconduct spelled out in charges against her. This all goes back to $5 million in FEMA money that was routed to friends and then back into her campaign.
The federal charges against Cherfilus-McCormick are related to a massive overpayment to a company, Trinity Healthcare Services, owned by the congresswoman's family. The company had a FEMA-funded contract to register people for COVID vaccines.
In July 2021, a Florida state agency mistakenly deposited the $5 million overpayment in the company's bank account, according to the indictment. But instead of returning the overpayment, Cherfilus-McCormick and her brother moved the funds to several other bank accounts "to disguise its source," the Justice Department said.
In the subsequent months, more than $1.1 million was transferred to accounts connected to her congressional campaign, the indictment said. Cherfilus-McCormick and a campaign staffer allegedly funneled some of the funds to friends and relatives, who donated it back to her campaign disguised as their own personal contributions. Such contributions, known as straw donations, are illegal.
Prosecutors alleged the congresswoman bought herself a 3.14-carat yellow diamond ring. She is also accused of falsely inflating business expenses and charitable contributions to reduce her tax liability.
Cherfilus-McCormick is charged with 15 counts, including theft of government funds, money laundering, making and receiving straw donor contributions, and aiding and assisting the preparation of a false and fraudulent statement on a tax return.
The congresswoman has called this a "sham indictment" and claims she'll be cleared once all the facts are known. But if there's a coherent explanation for all of this I haven't seen it reflected in any of the stories about her case.
Democrats find themselves in a difficult position. On the one hand, they are fighting for every seat in the midterms and losing this one won't help them. On the other hand, they were eager to get rid of Republican scam artist George Santos.
Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and his office say that Cherfilus-McCormick is “entitled to her day in court and the presumption of innocence,” and Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar of California told reporters Wednesday he also would not “prejudge any outcome” of the Ethics Committee’s proceedings.
But after Democrats agitated for the removal of serial fraudster Rep. George Santos of New York ahead of a full Ethics process in 2023, the party could be vulnerable to political attacks if it doesn’t now police a credibly accused embezzler in its own midst.
“If they give us conclusions that this actually happened, and there’s no question of doubt as to the fact that laws were broken, then our colleague will have to face the consequences of that — it’s plain and simple,” said Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.) in an interview.
“You lose your credibility if you’re applying a different set of laws and a different standard to people of the other party,” he said.
Democrats appear to be stuck doing the right thing, mostly because the (alleged) crimes here are so egregious. When the congresswoman requested a closed door hearing before the committee, Democrats refused and voted with Republicans to keep it open. It's possible the Dems have decided this is a loser of a case and they don't want to be stuck defending it in an election year, but we'll know soon enough.
The hearing portion of the "trial" has concluded but as I wrote this the committee hasn't announced the outcome of its vote yet. You can watch the whole thing here.
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