A member of the House Republican leadership today said he would support an Ethics Committee investigation into Rep. Cynthia McKinney’s scuffle with a Capitol Police officer last week.
Rep. Jack Kingston (R.-Ga.), vice chairman of the House Republican Conference, said he would need to consult with other members of the GOP leadership, but he would be inclined to back an investigation and believes other Republicans would as well.
“Well, I think that if it boils down to an ethics review of that,” Kingston said, “I believe I would support it, and members would.”
Yesterday, soon-to-retire Rep. Tom DeLay (R.-Tex.) told reporters that he would personally file an ethics complaint against McKinney if no other member did so first.
“If nobody in this House files an ethics charge, I am,” DeLay said in response to a question about McKinney. “Her behavior is outrageous. And it’s not the only time.”
DeLay also called McKinney a racist, as reported by the Drudge Report. “Cynthia McKinney is a racist,” he said on Fox News. “She has a long history of racism. Everything is racism with her. This is incredible arrogance, and - that sometimes hits these members of congress, but especially Cynthia McKinney.”
Republicans have shown no signs of letting up in their criticism of McKinney. Kingston cited his own personal experience with Capitol Police as evidence that McKinney’s behavior was unacceptable.
“All of us are subjected to ID checks regularly,” Kingston said. “In fact, I came here yesterday - I’m a member of leadership and I’ve been a member of Congress for 14 years - and I had been here one hour and I had to show my ID. And you know what, I’m proud to do it. Because what that law enforcement officer is doing is making sure we don’t have terrorists and other people who might be doing something wrong in the Capitol.”
