The House Ethics Committee will continue its probe into Rep. Mike Honda’s office after finding “substantial reason to believe” the California Democrat misused members of his congressional staff for campaign use.
Using taxpayer-funded resources and on-the-clock government workers for a member’s campaign violates both House rules and federal law
“Congressional staff members appear to have researched a potential campaign opponent, prepared materials for the campaign, used information from the congressional office for campaign purposes, and discussed campaign matters during official meetings in the district office and during official staff retreats,” the 41-page report reads.
The document shows exchanges between staffers acknowledging potentially illegal activity.
Message between staffers acknowledging illegal activity.
Honda retained his seat by a narrow margin after running against former Obama administration official Ro Khanna, whom he will face again in 2016.
Honda’s lawyer, Andrew Herman, released a statement claiming the Bay Area representative had no knowledge of any illegal activity and accused two former staffers of having malicious intentions behind their testimonies.
“The OCE based its findings on equivocal and conflicting statements made by the interviewees,” says the letter. “It rests a number of its conclusions on the testimony of two former staff members with motives to injure Representative Honda and his office.”
Herman also acknowledged that changes in the office have since been made to prevent any blurring between working on his bid for re-election and serving his constituents.
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