Chenoweth Defends Invitations Denies Intentional Ethics Violations; Says It’s Common Practice In Congress

U.S. Rep. Helen Chenoweth said on Tuesday that other members of Congress ask special interest representatives to meetings in their congressional offices using their campaign letterhead for the formal invitations.

But as she did last week, Chenoweth denied intentionally violating House ethics rules that prohibit mixing any kind of campaign activity with official business. And she said there was never any campaign contribution solicitation at any of the four official meetings she has admitted her fundraiser set up using campaign stationery.

Attending the meetings on May 15, June 5, June 12 and June 19, according to Chenoweth spokeswoman Khris Bershers, were representatives of the liquor, tobacco, oil and agriculture industries.

One invitee who declined to attend was Dan Weiss of the Sierra Club’s political action committee, or PAC, that handles campaign contributions and other political activity. He questioned the meeting’s legality and made public the invitation on Chenoweth campaign stationery that asked invitees to contact her campaign fund-raiser to say whether they would attend.

“This was not to discuss campaign issues relative to fund-raising,” Chenoweth told KIDO radio in Boise. “That was made explicitly clear. And these invitations were not sent out to PAC directors as I have been accused that they were. They were sent out to legislative and governmental affairs directors, and if the gentleman from the Sierra Club is also their PAC director, then he’s assuming two roles.”

Bershers said all the attendees held titles such as “president,” “vice president for government relations,” “senior director/manager, government relations” or “government relations specialist.”

But the invitation received by Weiss was addressed simply “Mr. Dan Weiss Sierra Club PAC.”

Chenoweth said she asked the ethics committee for guidance on the issue of campaign fund-raisers, organizing such meetings and sending the invitations on campaign stationery “not only for my sake, but it’s a widely held practice back here to invite people in to meet with you.”

A spokesman for the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct declined to gauge the pervasiveness of the practice.

But Alex Benes of the Center for Public Integrity would not dispute Chenoweth’s claim that others in Congress have done the same thing.

“That does take place,” Benes said. “You probably have an issue of sort of a blurred line where these people could be constituents or if they are special interests they could be providing information. One could argue that it is proper to meet with these people for official, congressional business. On the other hand, the way it was set up clearly speaks to the funding-raising purpose of it.”

He also described Chenoweth’s statement as “what we call the Rostenkowski defense” in reference to the former Ways and Means Committee Chairman convicted of mail fraud in the operation of his congressional office. Democrat Dan Rostenkowski claimed he was singled out for punishment for something other members of Congress had also done.

Chenoweth said she did not know whether any of the interests represented at the meetings have contributed to her campaign, but “we will look into it. If it’s a matter of interest, we will look into it.”

In her letter to ethics committee Chairwoman Nancy Johnson, R-Conn., Chenoweth said that she may have inadvertently violated House ethics guidelines, accepted full responsibility and has taken action to prevent any recurrence.