Ethics committee polices lawmakers in relative secrecy

On Thursday, House lawmakers voted overwhelmingly to continue an investigation into the activities of Rep. Eric Massa (D-NY) who resigned on Monday amid allegations of sexual misconduct. However, now that Massa has resigned, it is unclear whether the body responsible for the investigation, the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, must actually honor the House request to keep the investigation open.

The ethics committee is responsible for policing lawmakers, but as scandal continues to plague the U.S. legislature, some wonder if it’s time to do away with this unusually secretive clan of ten. John Bresnahan is the Capitol Hill bureau chief for Politico.com. And Marian Wang is a reporter with ProPublica, who just wrapped up an investigative look into the ethics committee and found walls of secrecy.