If you thought that a formal censure was the most serious punishment Congress could give one of its own members short of expulsion — guess again. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has just proved that, to the folks on Capitol Hill, censure — for all the stern rhetoric involved — is just a joke.
Which is why she just endorsed Rep. Charles Rangel for re-election.
The same Charlie Rangel whom she publicly rebuked in the well of the House of Representatives back in December 2010 for 11 violations of ethics rules.
As one congressman said at the time: “If expulsion is the death penalty, then censure is life in prison.”
Even a majority of Democrats voted to censure him — after rejecting the lesser punishment of a reprimand.
Looks like Rangel just won a reprieve — and the joke is on New York. And America.
Pelosi is just the latest major pol to rush to Rangel’s side in his primary battle — clearly unconcerned by the fact that his censure was the first of a member of the House in nearly 30 years.
Indeed, she hailed him as the “champion” of “the working people of our country.”
So much for her promise to “drain the [Washington] swamp.”
More important, though, her endorsement puts the lie to the notion that Rangel actually suffered anything but a minor inconvenience.
Censure, in other words, isn’t worth the paper it’s written on.
Rangel effectively ignored it from the get-go, saying he was “not going to be judged by this Congress.”
So why should anyone else being investigated for ethics violations fear the outcome of such a probe?
Congress can’t — and won’t — police itself. When it comes to disciplining its own members, it’s a sad, sick joke.
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