Fossella officially under Ethics investigation

via the Washington Post;

The House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct just announced that it has formed an investigative subcommittee to probe Rep. Vito Fossella (R-N.Y.), who announced yesterday he would not run for reelection after being charged with drunk driving and revelations of an extramarital affair and a daughter born out of wedlock.

The investigation thus far will only look into the drunk driving arrest and will commence after legal proceedings have occurred, so July at the earliest. This follows on a request by watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington;

Since the Ethics Committee is required to investigate Rep. Fossella’s drunk driving charges, it should take the opportunity to consider whether, by using taxpayer funded travel to pursue his romantic relationship with Lt. Col. Fay, Rep. Fossella violated House travel rules and the prohibition on conduct that does not reflect creditably on the House.

You can read the full CREW complaint here, caution PDF.

CREW humorously addressed the investigation with a nice shot of the House Ethics Committee lack of work ever;

Washington, DC – On May 19th, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) sent an ethics complaint against Rep. Vito Fossella (R-NY) to the House Ethics Committee, asking for an investigation into whether he violated any House rules. Today, the Ethics Committee voted to establish an investigative subcommittee to conduct an investigation on the DWI charge, but immediately recommended that the subcommittee defer action on its investigation until Fossella’s criminal proceedings are concluded.

Melanie Sloan, executive director of CREW, said today, “The Ethics Committee deferred an investigation of Vito Fossella? We are shocked, shocked, shocked. The only thing more shocking would be if the committee decided to investigate anything…ever.”

Thanks for letting us kick you around until January Vito!