Stories by Jennifer Yachnin:
Oct. 31, 2011
Members of Congress had a collective net worth of more than $2 billion in 2010, a nearly 25 percent increase over the 2008 total, according to a Roll Call analysis of Members' financial disclosure forms.
Aug. 18, 2011
According to Roll Call’s annual survey of Member wealth, Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) is now the richest Member of Congress, with a fortune worth at least $294 million, a vast increase over last year that was apparently the result of large transfers from his in-laws.
March 29, 2011
The House Ethics Committee moved incrementally closer Tuesday to resuming probes it started in the 111th Congress, as Democrats named 10 lawmakers to serve on investigative subcommittees.
March 28, 2011
Members of Congress have immunity from many routine parking tickets in the District of Columbia, but that doesn’t mean they can’t try to rack up fines.
March 25, 2011
Ethics experts suggest former Senate aide Doug Hampton’s indictment last week over allegations that he violated Congressional “revolving door” rules will serve as a stark reminder on Capitol Hill and K Street that lobbying rules carry real penalties.
March 24, 2011
Former Senate aide Doug Hampton has been indicted on charges that he violated conflict of interest laws — over allegations that he contacted his former boss, Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.), in violation of the chamber’s “revolving door” rules — the Justice Department announced Thursday.
March 23, 2011
Government reform advocates called Wednesday for the House Ethics Committee to complete its stalled investigation of Rep. Maxine Waters, calling an indefinite postponement of the inquiry “unfair” to the California Democrat and the House.
March 22, 2011
Missouri Republicans called Tuesday for Sen. Claire McCaskill to release income tax records related to her family’s ownership of a private aircraft that she has used for official Senate travel.
March 21, 2011
Sen. Claire McCaskill acknowledged Monday that she and her husband failed to pay about $287,000 in property taxes on a private aircraft that she used for official Senate travel and announced she intended to sell the “damn” plane.
March 18, 2011
More than a dozen Members have failed to disclose personal loans that they made to their campaigns — often omitting tens of thousands of dollars in assets from their reports in the process, a Roll Call analysis found.
March 18, 2011
Sometimes, even a Member of Congress needs help speechifying. Rep. Rob Wittman shelled out more than $3,200 from his official office budget in December 2009 to Altamont, Tenn.-based Podium Master, which conducts public speaking seminars and offers private coaching.
March 9, 2011
Following a year in which it conducted more than 100 inquiries and a rare public trial, the House Ethics Committee has had a glacial start in the 112th Congress.
March 7, 2011
Among the panel of four witnesses at a recent Transportation and Infrastructure Committee field hearing in Rep. James Lankford’s district, three were donors to his campaign last cycle.
March 4, 2011
Rep. Frank LoBiondo’s former treasurer plead guilty Friday to embezzling more than $450,000 from the Republican’s campaign accounts, the Justice Department announced.
March 4, 2011
The Senate’s own labor attorneys have been subpoenaed by a federal grand jury.
March 1, 2011
Former House Ethics Chairwoman Zoe Lofgren decried the panel’s new offices on Tuesday as “dysfunctional” and unfit for confidential work, and the panel’s current leaders acknowledged they would welcome a relocation.
Feb. 28, 2011
Rep. Bobby Rush has been sued repeatedly in local courts for contract disputes including unpaid bills, but thanks to quirks in Congressional reporting requirements, his annual financial reports offer no hint of that fiscal turbulence.
Feb. 20, 2011
With only four days to work on a House-passed spending bill before current funding expires, Senators appearing on the Sunday morning news shows seemed unwilling to risk a government shutdown, and several promoted a stopgap bill.
Feb. 16, 2011
When Rep. Dave Reichert relocated to a new District home in January, he didn’t need to hire movers: Three of his aides volunteered to help schlep his belongings.
Feb. 16, 2011
House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) used the panel’s first subpoena of the 112th Congress to renew his campaign to determine whether federal officials, including House and Senate lawmakers and aides, received special deals on mortgages and rental agreements.
Feb. 14, 2011
The Office of Congressional Ethics is investigating Rep. Jean Schmidt’s receipt of legal assistance from a Turkish-American interest group that has represented her in a host of proceedings in Ohio, one of the Republican’s counsels confirmed Friday.
Feb. 11, 2011
Baseball great Roger Clemens just threw a curveball at the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
Feb. 11, 2011
Michael Scanlon, a key figure in the influence-peddling investigation centered on disgraced ex-lobbyist Jack Abramoff, was sentenced Friday to a 20-month prison term and will be required to pay $20 million in restitution.
Feb. 10, 2011
Attorneys for ex-House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas) on Wednesday alleged misconduct among jurors who convicted him in a Texas court in November and requested a new trial, the Associated Press reported.
Feb. 10, 2011
A federal jury deemed former House aide Fraser Verrusio guilty on public corruption charges Thursday, in the final trial to stem from the federal government’s long-running probe of disgraced ex-lobbyist Jack Abramoff.
