Longtime New York Rep. Charles Rangel Guilty On House Ethics Charges
Rep. Charles Rangel's laundry list of indiscretions have caught up with him.
A House ethics panel found Rangel (D-NY) guilty on 11 counts, "ranging from accepting rent-stabilized apartments from a Manhattan developer to failing to pay taxes on rental income from his Dominican villa to raising charitable donations from companies and corporate executives who had business before the committee he led" the New York Times reports.
The 21-term congressman from Harlem had walked out of his public trial Monday after the panel agreed unanimously that "Rangel had inappropriately housed his political committees in a rent-controlled building, had used his congressional office to raise millions of dollars from corporations with business before his committee, and did not pay some taxes and fully disclose his assets."
On Tuesday, the panel determined that the 80-year-old's actions has broken congressional rules. Rangel, who represented himself in the months-long proceedings, now faces punishment that is likely to be only a "letter of reprimand or a formal censure."
Although the committee has the power to expel Rangel from the House, that takes a 2/3 vote and is seen as highly unlikely.
Rangel has been embroiled in ethics controversies for years, and was forced to step down from his position as House Ways and Means committee chair in March.