Rangel Dodges Questions About Ethics Investigation

Representative Charles Rangel of Harlem is getting heat from House Republicans to step down by the end of this week from his chairmanship of the Ways and Means Committee. The GOP says he shouldn't be leading the tax-writing committee while the ethics committee investigates him for an alleged pattern of tax evasion and other financial indiscretions. If Rangel refuses, Republicans say they will introduce a resolution demanding his removal.

So the question on everyone's minds at a Rangel media event today was, "Would Charles Rangel consider resigning his leadership?" But that was the question Rangel was determined to avoid. He had called an otherwise uneventful press conference about a federally backed bond program that has been subsidizing MTA infrastructure improvements since April. Rangel himself seemed to know why most of the reporters showed up today -- he declared at the beginning of the press conference that he would "hate to see anyone mar [the press conference] with questions that are not directly related" to the bond program.

By the end of the press conference, one reporter asked him what kinds of off-topic questions he was expecting to get today. Rangel declined to specify.

Well, the press conference was called for a specific purpose, and normally the people that calls it like for those questions to be geared towards why the press conference was called. I assume that there would be other questions concerning a different subject, and relying on your good faith, your integrity and your professionalism, I assume that you would respect that.

Taking few questions, Rangel bolted right after the press conference. House Democrats are expected to block any vote on a resolution calling for Rangel's removal fro the tax-writing committee. They say the House should wait for the ethics committee to finish its investigation.