U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush faces ethics inquiry
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U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush talks in his Washington D.C. office in the Rayburn House Office Building. (Tribune photo by Chris Walker /September 9, 2011)
U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush talks in his Washington D.C. office in the Rayburn House Office Building. (Tribune photo by Chris Walker /September 9, 2011)
WASHINGTON — An attorney for Rep. Bobby Rush said Wednesday that the South Side Democrat is cooperating with an inquiry by the Office of Congressional Ethics.
Scott E. Thomas, a Washington lawyer, said Rush had retained his firm, Dickstein Shapiro, and “asked that we be cooperative and provide the information requested.”
Thomas, a former chairman of the Federal Election Commission, did not disclose the subject of the inquiry. But he did say: “We believe that the circumstances being reviewed do not warrant any ethics sanctions, and we are hopeful that this inquiry will be concluded relatively soon.”
At the Office of Congressional Ethics, spokeswoman Kelly Brewington had no comment Wednesday. Rush’s spokeswoman, Debra Johnson, did not respond Wednesday to calls and emails from the Tribune.
The Office of Congressional Ethics is an independent agency that examines allegations of lawmaker misconduct. The office does not sanction lawmakers, but can refer matters to the House Ethics Committee for further review.
Rush, 67, who has served in the House since 1993,is an ordained Baptist minister. Over the years, campaign dollars have gone to his wife, Carolyn, for political consulting and to his non-denominational church, records show.
The Tribune reported last December that Carolyn Rush collected more than $300,000 over the past five years from her husband's campaign. Lawmakers may hire spouses and other relatives for campaign work.
He burst into the public eye during the late 1960s when he co-founded the Illinois Black Panther Party. He later was a Chicago alderman. In 2002, Rush started a church on the South Side, the Beloved Community Christian Church, which has a number of social service offshoots.
Last September, he took a temporary leave from the House to care for his wife in Chicago as she recovered from major surgery. He returned to Washington earlier this year.
Scott E. Thomas, a Washington lawyer, said Rush had retained his firm, Dickstein Shapiro, and “asked that we be cooperative and provide the information requested.”
Thomas, a former chairman of the Federal Election Commission, did not disclose the subject of the inquiry. But he did say: “We believe that the circumstances being reviewed do not warrant any ethics sanctions, and we are hopeful that this inquiry will be concluded relatively soon.”
At the Office of Congressional Ethics, spokeswoman Kelly Brewington had no comment Wednesday. Rush’s spokeswoman, Debra Johnson, did not respond Wednesday to calls and emails from the Tribune.
The Office of Congressional Ethics is an independent agency that examines allegations of lawmaker misconduct. The office does not sanction lawmakers, but can refer matters to the House Ethics Committee for further review.
Rush, 67, who has served in the House since 1993,is an ordained Baptist minister. Over the years, campaign dollars have gone to his wife, Carolyn, for political consulting and to his non-denominational church, records show.
The Tribune reported last December that Carolyn Rush collected more than $300,000 over the past five years from her husband's campaign. Lawmakers may hire spouses and other relatives for campaign work.
He burst into the public eye during the late 1960s when he co-founded the Illinois Black Panther Party. He later was a Chicago alderman. In 2002, Rush started a church on the South Side, the Beloved Community Christian Church, which has a number of social service offshoots.
Last September, he took a temporary leave from the House to care for his wife in Chicago as she recovered from major surgery. He returned to Washington earlier this year.
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