Sharpton Blames Press For Rangel's Troubles

The Rev. Al Sharpton indicted members of the news media last night during a lavish bash to celebrate the 80th birthday of Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.).

“You have started and executed the political crucifixion,” Sharpton said at the event, which was held in Manhattan’s posh Plaza hotel.

Rangel faces over a dozen charges that he violated House ethics rules.

Ethics Subcommittee Finds "Substantial Reason" To Believe That Rep. Waters Broke Rules

A House subcommittee on ethics announced today that it has found “substantial reason” to believe that Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) violated House ethics conduct rules when she intervened on behalf of a bank which her husband once served as a board member and owned stock in.

Waters is a member of the House Financial Services Committee, and could face trial if she does not reach a settlement. She is the second House Democrat to be charged with ethics violations this summer, after longtime Congressman Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.), was charged last week…

By Philip Bunnell

Rangel To Face 13 Charges From Ethics Subcommittee

The House ethics subcommittee investigating Rep. Charles Rangel has unveiled 13 ethics charges, saying there is “substantial reason” to believe Rangel violated several House ethics laws and federal regulations. My colleague Robert Hune-Kalter has the full story…

-Rob Sanna

No Deal Yet For Rangel

Unless Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) can strike a plea bargain with the House Ethics Committee in the next hour, members on the committee will convene to decide which charges to bring against Rangel in a trial that would likely begin in September.

This morning, Rangel, the fomer Ways and Means Chair, told a group of reporters that he hasn’t had a bad day since he survived a Chinese military attack in Korea 60 years ago, but said “today I have to reassess that.”

Rangel is 80-years-old. He has served in Congress for four decades.

Rangel Hoping To Avoid Trial

Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) said on Tuesday that he is hopeful for a settlement with House ethics investigators, but added that he isn’t sure about the status of such talks.

Rangel is facing a number of allegations that he violated House ethics rules; including claims that he improperly used a rent-stabilized apartment as a campaign office, used official stationery to solicit support for a City College center named in his honor and failed to properly report ownership of a vacation villa in the Dominican Republic.

The negotiations surrounding the case between senior congressional Democrats and Rep. Rangel have put some Democrats in an uncomfortable situation. Many House Democrats that have been close with Rangel for years are now worried about the subsequent political fallout for the Democratic Party in the November elections if an ethics trial occurs in September…

- Alexa Gitler