Congress is capable of getting its act together

Mary Ellen Klas, Tribune News Service

The resignations of three members of Congress over misconduct allegations demonstrate that the US House — which most Americans think can’t get its act together — not only has the capacity to hold members accountable, but can also do so rapidly. At least, when it wants to. Florida Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick is the latest member to step down. The Florida Democrat announced her resignation on Tuesday, minutes before the House Ethics Committee was scheduled to vote on disciplinary measures. The committee had already found her guilty of 25 ethics violations for misusing millions of COVID relief dollars to fund her 2022 special election, which she denies.

Last month, the committee aired the evidence against Cherfilus-McCormick in a public hearing — a welcome step toward transparency. But it was the first time in 16 years that the committee had done so. And other ethics cases have lingered in the committee too long.

Cherfilus-McCormick maintains her innocence. She is awaiting trial on federal charges relating to the accusations and has said the Ethics Committee acted improperly by not waiting until the federal trial is completed. But facing the prospect of expulsion, she resigned.

“This was not a fair process,” she said in an online statement, blasting her colleagues for conducting a “witch hunt” that “trampled on” her due process rights. She now joins former members Eric Swalwell (a California Democrat) and Tony Gonzales (a Texas Republican), who stepped down earlier in the month. The two men faced the potential of being booted from office by their colleagues over allegations of sexual misconduct — which they also deny.

Resignations like these don’t happen in a vacuum. They require pressure from leaders and party stalwarts. And they often take too long. Congressional leaders, wired to protect their own and afraid of upsetting their narrow margins, are famous for shrouding ethics investigations in secrecy and dragging them out for years. But while a fair legal process is an important right, it should not preclude Congress from investigating and condemning unethical behaviour among its members.

The speed with which Swalwell resigned after four women accused him of sexual assault, including rape, was unusual. So was the departure of Gonzales, who admitted to texting explicit messages and having an affair with a former aide who died by suicide. House Republican leaders conveniently refused to call for Gonzales to step aside before his March primary election, but after he lost the race and Swalwell resigned, they changed their tune.

The relative speed of this House cleaning is overdue. It’s now time for a deeper reckoning. When members who are accused of serious ethical violations are allowed to retain the trappings of office, continue raising unlimited campaign funds, take votes on controversial issues, and act as if nothing’s changed, public trust vanishes.

That trust has been eroding for years as Congress kept members in their jobs too long after evidence emerged of wrongdoing. These three resignations are an important step, but if Congress wants a truly bipartisan clean sweep before the midterm elections, it should do two more things: Accelerate all pending investigations, and swiftly discipline members who have been found to flout ethics rules. Faster resolution of ethics claims would also have the benefit of clearing members who are found to be wrongly accused.

One pending investigation relates to Cory Mills, the Florida Republican whom the Ethics Committee has been investigating over allegations of domestic violence, revenge porn, campaign finance violations, and benefiting from federal contracts while in office.

Mills denies all these accusations, and Republicans have gone out of their way to protect him. For example, after police obtained an arrest warrant for him last year after an alleged assault of a 27-year-old woman at his DC apartment in February 2025, Trump’s interim US attorney refused to sign it, according to the Washington Post. Democrats filed a resolution to formally reprimand Mills in September.

Not every Republican has stood behind Mills. Nancy Mace, a South Carolina Republican and advocate for sexual assault victims, tried to have Mills removed from the House Foreign Affairs and Armed Services committee. House leaders blocked that effort but said they would expand the ethics probe. Mace has also called for Mills to be expelled. But — in a sign of just how many ethics investigations have piled up — Mace is facing her own probe based on a referral from the Office of Congressional Conduct. Mills has, in turn, called for Mace to be expelled.

At least House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has signaled he’s committed to policing his members in response to the public’s displeasure. Unlike Speaker Mike Johnson, Jeffries removed Cherfilus-McCormick as chair of a foreign affairs subcommittee as the ethics case proceeded, and Swalwell’s swift resignation put pressure on Republicans to get Gonzales to resign.

Every member of Congress deserves due process, but the delays embedded in the ethics system allow members to abuse it, using it both as a weapon and a shield. Congress’ approval rating is now near rock bottom at 10%. Clearing the ethics docket while cleaning house would be one long overdue, and bipartisan, way to improve it.