The House of Representatives on Friday voted to formally sanction Rep. David Schweikert (R-Ariz.) for 11 ethics rule violations.
Chairman of the House Ethics Committee Ted Deutch (D-Fla.), in calling for Schweikert to be reprimanded by the House on Friday, said on the chamber floor, “One of our most basic obligations as members of Congress is to adhere to the principle that public office is a public trust.”
“To uphold that trust and to maintain civic confidence in the integrity of this body, we as members have bound ourselves by certain standards of official conduct,” Deutch continued.
“I believe there are a number of assertions, findings, and unfounded speculative statements in the report and its accompanying Statement of Alleged Violations (“SAV”) that would be proven false or misleading if subjected to the scrutiny of a full adjudicatory process,” he wrote in his response. “I have resolved to seek a settlement, in lieu of pursuing a protracted adjudicatory process, for a variety of reasons.”
He later added, “Although the adjudicatory process would provide me an opportunity to challenge aspects of the report and SAV I believe to be misleading, inaccurate, or unfair, it would require financial resources that I do not have and would significantly delay closure for me and my family.”
He also wrote that he agreed with the report’s statement that he is ultimately responsible for ensuring that his congressional office and campaign are compliant with rules and regulations.
“While I may not agree with many of the details contained in the report and SAV, I accept the ISC’s conclusion that I fell short in fulfilling my own responsibilities by not adequately supervising my staff and others working on my behalf,” he wrote.
“This is particularly true with respect to Oliver Schwab, who ran my congressional office and had significant roles in my campaign for much of the time covered in this investigation. As the Report acknowledges, I placed a great of trust in Mr. Schwab to run daily operations and he did so with a great deal of autonomy.”
He added that he should have taken “a greater role in overseeing” Schwab’s activities and the activities of other staff.
“With this settlement, I am prepared to take responsibility and admit to the violations contained in the SAV that resulted from these shortcomings,” he wrote.
In a statement released Thursday, Grace White, a spokeswoman for Schweikert, said he wanted to put the issue behind him.
“We are pleased the committee has issued their report and we can move forward from this chapter,“ she said. ”As noted in the review, all issues have been resolved and Congressman Schweikert will continue working hard for Arizona’s 6th District.”
The fifth-term Phoenix Republican, who was first elected in 2010, Schweikert is seeking reelection in Arizona’s 6th Congressional District. He will run unopposed in the Republican primary on Aug. 4.
