House Ethics Committee Considering Plea Deal from Rangel

The NewsHour has learned that Rep. Charles Rangel’s attorneys have presented the House ethics committee with a tentative plea agreement related to 13 charges of ethical misconduct allegedly committed by the New York Democrat.

According to a Democratic source with knowledge of the status of negotiations, the committee is considering the settlement agreement and could take several days to make a decision.

The ethics committee, made up of Republican and Democratic members of Congress, outlined the charges against Rangel Thursday in the beginning of a public trial on the charges. Democrats hoped to get Rangel to reach a plea agreement on the charges in order to avoid an embarrassing trial during the 2010 election season.

Rangel is accused of failing to report income from a rental property in the Dominican Republic and other sources, plus for soliciting money for the Charles B. Rangel Center for Public Service at the City College of New York from businesses that had issues before the House Ways and Means committee he chaired.

Rangel issued a statement shortly after the hearing defending himself against some of the charges.