House Ethics Committee extends probe related to Rep. Rashida Tlaib
The House Ethics committee usually avoids providing information regarding ongoing probes. The current investigation is said to end by November 14.
By OMRI NAHMIASRep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) listens to testimony during a hearing of the Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Subcommittee on "Confronting White Supremacy (Part I): The Consequences of Inaction" on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., May 15, 2019(photo credit: JOSHUA ROBERTS / REUTERS)
The US House Ethics committee announced Monday that its chairman and ranking member jointly decided “to extend the matter regarding Representative Rashida Tlaib, which was transmitted to the committee by the Office of Congressional Ethics” in August.The statement did not specify what is the reason for the probe, and a spokesperson for the committee declined to respond to The Jerusalem Post’s query.The House Ethics committee usually avoids providing information regarding ongoing probes. The current investigation is said to end by November 14.Tlaib spokesperson Denzel McCampbell confirmed in a statement to Politico that the matter of the inquiry is a potential campaign finance violation by the Congresswoman.“Representative Tlaib has cooperated completely with the committee to resolve the referral, which involves the same claims over her publicly disclosed salary during the campaign that conservative groups pressed back in March,” he told Politico.The Washington Free Beacon first reported in March that Tlaib received two payments from campaign funds on November 16 and December 1 that totaled $17,500.“Following the general election, Tlaib cut herself a $2,000 check on November 16 and disbursed $15,500 to herself on December 1, which was well above the average of what she was paying herself during the campaign,” the Beacon’s report said.A Federal Election Commission spokesperson told the Beacon following the report that a candidate can pay themselves after the general election only for activity that occurred up to the day of the election.“The committee notes that the mere fact of a referral or an extension, and the mandatory disclosure of such an extension and the name of the subject of the matter, does not itself indicate that any violation has occurred, or reflect any judgment on behalf of the committee,” chairman Rep. Ted Deutch and ranking member Rep. Kenny Marchant said in a joint statement.
