Ethics panel starts probes of 2 Dems; gets hacked:
The House ethics committee announced Thursday it is investigating two California Democratic lawmakers, but its embarrassed leaders then had to explain that other members—named in a confidential memo that a hacker posted online—may have committed no wrongdoing.The committee said it is investigating whether Rep. Maxine Waters used her influence to help a bank in which her husband owned stock, and whether the couple benefited as a result. Separately, the panel is investigating whether Rep. Laura Richardson failed to disclose required information on her financial disclosure forms and received special treatment from a lender.
As the House was conducting scheduled votes Thursday, ethics chairwoman Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., went to the microphone to announce that a confidential weekly report of the committee from July had leaked out in a case of “cyber-hacking.” A committee statement said its security was breached through “peer to peer file sharing software” by a junior employee who was working from home. The staff member was fired.
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The Post reported that nearly half the members of the House Appropriations defense subcommittee were under scrutiny.
