Bill Kristol: Republicans Should 'Just Shut Up' About Charlie Rangel's Ethics Charges

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Sam Stein

Bill Kristol: Republicans Should 'Just Shut Up' About Charlie Rangel's Ethics Charges

Posted: 08- 1-10 10:45 AM


Some conservatives on Sunday pointed to New York Congressman Charlie Rangel's ethics charges as evidence that Democrats had failed to "drain the swamp" in Washington. Activist Liz Cheney, for example, accused Rangel of "real imperial arrogance."

But even as the GOP piled on -- and Democrats established their distance -- there were those in the Republican tent who expressed caution about suddenly becoming ethical crusaders.

"Just shut up," the Weekly Standard's Bill Kristol said on "Fox News Sunday" when asked what Republicans should do about Rangel. "There is a bipartisan ethics committee. Let the process go forward they don't need jump on this -- they will just get questioned. Believe me there are plenty of congressman in both parties who have been imperial and arrogant and who have centers named after them ... The idea that republicans should go around throwing stones at Charlie Range; is just foolish on their part."

Even before Kristol's remarks, other Republicans exhibited caution too. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), for one, was forced to sidestep questions about the various ethics scandals involving fellow Senate Republicans -- notably John Ensign (R-N.V.) and David Vitter -- during a sit down with "Fox News Sunday."

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http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/01/bill-kristol-r...