Maxine Waters to Join Charlie Rangel on Ethics Committee Hot Seat

On Monday Congresswoman Maxine Waters will be joining her buddy Chuck Rangel on the ethics comittee hot seat. At issue is deal that Waters is accused of arraigning between  regulators and OneUnited of Massachusetts, a bank in which her husband held shares. Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.), who did not own shares in the company, subsequently inserted language into the bailout bill that effectively directed the Treasury to give special consideration to that bank which had been cited for unsound business practices and excessive compensation.

Among the key documents fingering waters is  an October 17, 2008, email from former Deputy Assistant Secretary for Banking and Finance King Mueller to former Assistant Treasury Secretary Neel Kashkari and other Treasury officials referencing the contact between Frank and Paulson:

Just spoke w/ Jim [Segel] in BF's [Barney Frank’s] office. This is about One United Bank (a minority owned bank in BF's district). Maxine Waters is interested in the bank as well, Treas[ury] and others met w/ them (minority bankers assoc) last month per the Water's request. They were a big holder in f/f preferred. BF is interested and may call HMP [Henry Paulson] again about this. FDIC is their primary federal regulator. [Emphasis added.]

And there is also this October 16, 2008, email from Kashkari to former Deputy Assistant Secretary for Appropriations and Management Peter Dugas:

“Peter, Jim Siegel [sic] from Frank’s office called a few times-can one of you follow-up with him?” (Segel serves as Frank’s Chief Counsel.) Paulson’s October 2008 calendar, which has been released separately, details calls from Frank on October 2, 3, 7, 9, 13, and 17.

With respect to Rep. Waters, the documents include a January 13, 2009, email from Brookly McLaughlin, Treasury’s Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, expressing surprise at Waters’ apparent conflict of interest: “Further to email below, WSJ [Wall Street Journal] tells me: …Apparently this bank is the only one that has gotten money through section 103-6 of the EESA law. And Maxine Waters’ husband is on the board of the bank. ??????”

The fact that Frank and Waters improperly intervened to score some TARP cash for OneUnited is not shocking. This is exactly the kind of corrupt deal-making xpected when the federal government decided to throw massive amounts of taxpayer dollars at private institutions.Thankfully the ethics committee has gotten involved.


According to the LATimes:

A House panel is preparing to accuse Rep. Maxine Waters of at least one ethics violation in her efforts to help a bank with ties to her husband, and the longtime Los Angeles Democrat plans to fight the charges in a House trial, according to a source familiar with the case.

The allegations were presented Friday to Waters, the source said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because the investigation is confidential.

Waters, an outspoken legislator who has held elective office in Sacramento or Washington for more than three decades, could not be reached Friday night.

The findings on the investigation into Waters by the Office of Congressional Ethics are expected to be made public on Monday.

....The funding came three months after Waters, a senior member of the committee that oversees banking, helped arrange a meeting between officials of the bank, other minority-owned financial institutions and Treasury Department representatives.

Waters' husband, Sidney Williams, had owned stock in the bank and served on its board.

Waters has previously said that she fully disclosed her husband's ties to the bank.

She has said her efforts were consistent with her longtime work to promote opportunity for minority-owned businesses and lending in underserved communities, such as her South Central Los Angeles district.

As in Rangel's case, a bipartisan panel of lawmakers will be formed to hear Waters' case, probably in the fall, unless she and the committee reach a settlement.

Maxine Waters is a perfect example of what is wrong with Congress a partisan who uses the office to promote her legacy and enrich her family and her friends. Even worse she represents the ultimate in political  hypocrisy. The week after the tea parties around the capital the days of the Obamacare votes Waters was  she was front and center on TV criticizing the words and methods of the protesters (who were generally peaceful and respectful.) She also used her criticism as an opportunity to bash Republicans for supporting the tea parties. Yet as this video shows, in 2007 she was a leader, speaking at a Code Pink rally, where the protesters were screaming "F**K The USA" as she was screaming "Bush is a Liar." Nice going Maxine, an  American Hating crook.