Full Report On Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA)
News Stories
- Lawyers for Waters want ethics to halt probe for evidence
August 26, 2010 - Let It Be Known As The Maxine Waters Loophole
August 25, 2010 - Congress delays on whistleblowers
August 18, 2010 - 'No Back Room Deals,' Vows Rep. Maxine Waters
August 17, 2010 - Ethics inquiries in Congress increase this year
August 16, 2010 - Congressional Ethics an Oxymoron?
August 16, 2010 - Rep. Maxine Waters blasts ethics panel and media, defends links to OneUnited
August 14, 2010 - Rep. Waters set to launch ethics defense with reporter roundtable discussion
August 12, 2010 - Maxine Waters Whacked, Barney Frank Untouched: Jonathan Weil
August 11, 2010 - Rep. Waters charged on three counts
August 9, 2010 - Why Waters and Rangel are the Poster Duo for Political Corruption
August 8, 2010 - Congressional ethics investigations show the system is working
August 4, 2010 - Democrats declare swamp of corruption drained
August 3, 2010 - Rep. Maxine Waters of California probably broke ethics rules, House panel finds
August 3, 2010 - For Congress, a New Vigilance in Policing Ethics Cases
August 2, 2010 - Rangel, Waters ethics cases represent laudable progress
August 2, 2010 - Ethics cases raise racial questions
August 2, 2010 - House Inquiry on Waters Tied to Bank
July 31, 2010 - Decision near on Maxine Waters ethics case
July 30, 2010 - Is Congressional Ethics Office Targeting Black Politicians?
June 29, 2010 - Lawmaker ties to banking business go beyond norm
June 16, 2010 - Pelosi considering rewriting ethics rules
June 10, 2010 - Congresswoman Hints That Comcast May Have Tried To Buy Her Support
June 8, 2010 - Advocates push back against black lawmakers on ethics office
June 7, 2010 - Congress Could Use Financial Overhaul, Too
May 27, 2010 - Michelle Malkin: The Shady ShoreBank Bailout
May 23, 2010 - Ethics Laws for politicians, public servants need upgrades, says former FBI agent
April 22, 2010 - Bill Boyne: Congressional ethics committee has its hands full
March 31, 2010 - A Frustrated Caucus Keeps Complaints Quiet
March 12, 2010 - The Government's Most Appalling Scandals Of 2009
January 7, 2010 - OneUnited skips third payment
December 22, 2009 - Thanks a lot, L.A.
November 26, 2009 - Waters makes personal defense of ethics after investigation leak
October 30, 2009 - Anatomy of an Ethics Leak
October 30, 2009 - Ethics Inquiries Into Lawmakers Surface via Security Breach
October 30, 2009 - Dozens in Congress under ethics inquiry
October 29, 2009 - Congressional Ethics Inquiries Drag on, Despite Vows to End Corruption
October 17, 2009 - Watchdog comes back to bite Democrats
October 13, 2009
The 15 most corrupt members of Congress
- Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-FL)
- Sen. Roland Burris (D-IL)
- Rep. Ken Calvert (R-CA)
- Rep. Nathan Deal (R-GA)
- Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)
- Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D-IL)
- Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-CA)
- Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
- Rep. Alan B. Mollohan (D-WV)
- Rep. John P. Murtha (D-PA)
- Rep. Charles B. Rangel (D-NY)
- Rep. Laura Richardson (D-CA)
- Rep. Pete Visclosky (D-IN)
- Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA)
- Rep. Don Young (R-AK)
Dishonorable mentions
Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA)
Representative Maxine Waters (D-CA) is a ten-term member of Congress, representing California’s 35th congressional district. She is a senior member of the House Financial Services Committee. Rep. Waters’ ethics issues stem from a meeting she arranged between officials at the Department of Treasury and OneUnited Bank, a bank with which she has financial ties. Rep. Waters was included in CREW’s 2005 and 2006 congressional corruption reports for unrelated matters.
Meeting Between OneUnited and Treasury Officials
In September 2008, Rep. Waters asked then-Secretary of the Treasury Henry Paulson to hold a meeting for minority-owned banks that had suffered from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac losses. The Treasury Department complied and held a session with approximately a dozen senior banking regulators, representatives from minority-owned banks and their trade association.
Officials of OneUnited Bank, one of the largest black-owned banks in the country, which also has close ties to Rep. Waters, attended the meeting along with Rep. Waters’ chief of staff. Kevin Cohee, chief executive officer of OneUnited, used the meeting as an opportunity to ask for bailout funds. Former Bush White House officials stated they were surprised when OneUnited officials asked for bailout funds because they understood the meeting had been arranged to discuss the losses minority-owned banks endured when the federal government took over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
In December 2008, Rep. Waters intervened again, asking Treasury to host another meeting to ensure minority-owned banks received part of the $700 billion allocated under the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). Within two weeks, on December 19, 2008, OneUnited secured $12.1 million in bailout funds.
Rep. Waters did not disclose her financial ties to OneUnited Bank to Treasury officials in her letters requesting meetings between regulators and bank officials. Treasury officials claimed that although OneUnited also requested a meeting with regulators regarding Fannie and Freddie Mac losses, it wasn’t until Rep. Waters intervened that the Treasury approved a meeting.
By using her position as a member of Congress to assist a bank to which she has financial ties, Rep. Waters violated House conflict-of-interest rules and engaged in conduct that does not reflect creditably upon the House.