Waters makes personal defense of ethics after investigation leak

By Michael O'Brien , The Hill

October 30, 2009

Rep. Maxine Waters defended herself after news broke Friday that she has been under investigation by the House ethics committee.

Waters (D-Calif.), who was one of the 30 lawmakers named in a Washington Post article as being under scrutiny from the committee, waged a personal defense of her role in having allegedly helped arrange a meeting at the Treasury on a bailout for a minority-owned bank in which her husband maintained a financial stake.

The congresswoman said she was simply providing assistance to a minority-owned institution, something she does routinely.

"It's true that the ethics committee has initiated an investigation to find out, exactly, why I contacted the Treasury on behalf of minority banks who did not have access without some assistance," she said during an interview on CNBC. "This is what I do: I assist minority agencies, whether they're banks, radio stations, what have you, who don't have access to the regulatory agencies here."

She said that her actions broke no rules, and welcomed the ethics investigation.

"As a matter of fact, I do it not on behalf of the bank, but only on behalf of associations," Waters explained. "The bank that is being referred to is but one bank of many banks that is represented by the association.

"Absolutely there is nothing wrong with that," she added. "Let the investigations go on — I have no problems with that. I have not broken any rules."