Why Is Charlie Rangel Still Chairman Of Ways And Means?

Nancy Pelosi and Co. continue to fall short on ending corruption and shady business dealings in Congress.  Case in point - Charlie Rangel:

Today, the New York Times reports that he “played a pivotal role” in preserving a tax loophole benefiting an oil drilling company, Nabors Industries, whose chief executive pledged $1 million to the center that was named in Rangel’s honor. Rangel and Nabors’ CEO Eugene Isenberg have denied that there was any quid pro quo here, but the Times story does not paint a pretty picture. Among other things, it notes, Rangel was at one point firmly against the tax shelter in question before suddenly coming out in favor of leaving the loophole in place—a move that saves “Nabors an estimated tens of millions of dollars annually.” And then there’s this: “while the issue was before his committee, Mr. Rangel met with Mr. Isenberg and a lobbyist for Nabors and discussed it, on the same morning that the congressman and Mr. Isenberg met to talk about the chief executive’s potential support for the Rangel center.”

All of this after the news broke over the summer that Rangel had earned over $75,000 in income without declaring it to the IRS and was leasing three rent controlled apartments for his own political purposes.

The Democrats campaigned in 2006 partly on the platform that they would run the most ethical and transparent Congress in history.  The fact that Charlie Rangel is still Chairman of one of the House’s most powerful committees squelches that talking point.  If a Republican was suspected of committing similar ethics violations he’d likely be out of a job at this point.  Additionally, any Democrat who had received money from Rangel would be called upon to return it.

Rangel is an embarrassment on so many levels. His constant rude and offensive outbursts demean the House.  Combined with his obviously lax ethics standards, there is no reason this man should continue to represent Harlem in Washington.

Why hasn’t Pelosi called for Rangel to, at the very least, relinquish his gavel until an investigation into his business dealings is complete?