WASHINGTON — The Senate voted Wednesday to block efforts by Republican Rep. Nancy Mace to clarify allegations of sexual misconduct against members of Congress.
Mace, a conservative Republican running for governor of South Carolina, forced a vote down on his resolution ordering the House Ethics Committee to make public all reports on allegations that congressional lawmakers and aides engaged in sexual misconduct or harassment.
But by a vote of 357-65, the House voted to refer the Mace resolution to committee — a move that killed it.
The Ethics Committee encouraged members to vote to appeal this decision. In a joint statement, the Republican and Democratic committee leaders argued that it “would discourage victims’ cooperation and witness participation in ongoing and future investigations” and would make it difficult for the committee to “investigate and end sexual misconduct in the House.”
“Here and elsewhere, sex offenders should never be immune from accountability for their wrongdoing,” said Chairman Michael Guest, R-Miss., and Rep. Mark DeSaulnier, D-Calif.,
But, they added, “victims may be re-victimized by the public disclosure of interim work product, transcripts of interviews and certain exhibits. And witnesses, who often speak to the Committee confidentially or on condition of anonymity in the future, may fear reprisals if their cooperation is made public.”
Mace has spoken openly about her experiences as a survivor of sexual abuse, and has been in the middle of the battle to release Jeffrey Epstein’s government files. He was one of just four House Republicans who joined Democrats in an impeachment motion last fall that bypassed his own GOP leadership and ultimately led to the Justice Department’s release of the Epstein files.
He said his decision came after NBC News and other outlets reported that his GOP colleague, Texas Rep. Tony Gonzales, sent sexual messages to a female assistant, Regina Santos-Aviles, who he allegedly had an affair with before he committed suicide last year. Previously, Gonzales denied that he was having an affair, but he has never spoken about the allegations since these messages appeared.
Mace is among several Republicans who have called on Gonzales to resign.
“I would like members of Congress to tell their female colleagues where they stand on sexual harassment in the US House of Representatives,” Mace told reporters. “Do you support the women up here, who work up here, and who are your colleagues, or do you not have them?”
Earlier on Wednesday, the House Ethics team said it will open an investigation into the allegations against Gonzales. House rules expressly prohibit lawmakers from engaging in relationships with their staff.
In a brief statement, Gonzales said of the Ethics investigation: “I welcome the opportunity to present all the facts to the committee.”
Just because the Ethics Committee launched an official investigation into Gonzales doesn’t mean its report will ever see the light of day. Since the Ethics panel has jurisdiction only over sitting members of Congress, the investigation will end if he suddenly resigns, or if he loses his seat this year and the report is not yet completed.
On Tuesday night in Texas, Gonzales was forced into a runoff election in May against GOP challenger Brandon Herrera.
