Rep. Maxine Waters (Creative Commons)

Though specific charges were not named in the committee's announcement, the violations stem from a meeting she arranged in Sept. 2008 between OneUnited Bank, a bank her husband was a stockholder and former boardmember in, and Treasury officials.

Just months after the meeting, OneUnited received $12 million in bailout funds.

The House Ethics Committee also made public Monday an independent report conducted by the Office of Congressional Ethics. In the report, Waters is said to have spoken with another House member about her reservations with helping the struggling bank, and she was advised not to intervene. She ignored that advice.

Specific charges against Waters won't be released by the House Ethics Committee until Congress returns from summer recess in September.

Also this fall Waters will face a public trial for her actions. But she will have to wait until Charles Rangel's (D-N.Y.) trial is over.

(Both Reps. Waters and Rangel could potentially avoid the trial, though, if either one or both of them reach a settlement with the House.)

Last week, a House ethics panel charged Rangel with 13 House violations, including failing to pay taxes on property as well as not reporting thousands of dollars in assets to Congress. 

Many Democrats fear the negative publicity from the ethics trials will impact the November elections, possibly leading to the Democrat's loss of control of the House.

"This is precisely the distraction that Democrats don't need right now," said Nathan Gonzales, a political handicapper with the Rothenberg Political Report. "The entire Democratic strategy is to focus on Republicans....The more the public is focused on Democrats this fall, the worse the losses are going to be."

That focus may have already shifted. Waters and Rangel have both made headlines in recent weeks, shifting attention away from issues and toward ethics.

Rangel's scandal even prompted President Obama to comment.

"I think Charlie Rangel served a very long time and served his constituents very well," Obama said. "But these allegations are very troubling, and, you know, he's somebody who is at the end of his career, 80 years old. I'm sure that what he wants is to be able to end his career with dignity, and my hope is that happens."

While Obama has not commented on Waters situation yet, he may have similar advice for her.

So, the question is: Will Waters and Rangel go quietly or put up a fight?

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