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CHARGES AGAINST CONGRESSWOMAN SCHMIDT STUDIED
Jessica Wehrman
Middletown Journal
http://www.middletownjournal.com/news/ohio-news/charges-against-congresswoman-schmidt-studied-1202543.html
July 7 2011
Ohio
House committee to decide if a violation has occurred
WASHINGTON - An announcement earlier this month that a House panel
was weighing a course of action regarding possible ethics violations
by local U.S. Rep. Jean Schmidt is the latest chapter in what has
been a three-year dispute involving a defamation suit, allegations of
"blood money," and a clash over a 1915 feud between Turkey and Armenia.
David Krikorian, who ran against Schmidt, R-Loveland, twice as an
independent in 2008 and lost the Democratic nomination for the seat
in 2010, is accusing the congresswoman of improperly accepting free
legal help from the Turkish Coalition of America.
Schmidt's congressional
district covers southern Warren County and part of Hamilton County
and several counties east of Cincinnati.
Earlier this month, the House Ethics Committee
said it had received a referral on a case involving Schmidt and
would decide on a course of action by Aug. 16. In a press release
announcing the move, the committee said the referral does not indicate
"that any violation has occurred, or reflect any judgment on behalf
of the committee."
The committee did not specify what charges it was investigating,
but Krikorian has asked House watchdogs to weigh in on the issue.
Krikorian, who is of Armenian descent, has had a long-standing feud
with Schmidt since their 2008 race. During that race, he circulated
campaign materials claiming Schmidt had accepted "blood money" from
Turkish interests in exchange for her opposition to a congressional
resolution declaring the 1915 conflict a genocide.
Schmidt responded by asking the Ohio Elections Commission to
investigate whether the materials violated election law, arguing the
flier was based on false statements. The Ohio Elections Commission
ultimately sided with Schmidt.
Schmidt later filed a $6.8 million defamation suit against Krikorian,
which is still pending.
Now, Krikorian said Schmidt has unethically accepted free legal help
for those cases from the Turkish Coalition of America and its Turkish
American Legal Defense Fund. As evidence, he cites a transcript from
the Ohio Elections Commission case in which Schmidt attorney Bruce
Fein said the Turkish American Legal Defense Fund had not charged the
campaign for legal services and "we would not charge them legal fees."
"The facts show Schmidt never intended to pay all the money back,"
Krikorian said.
Krikorian's lawyer, Christopher Finney, who also has represented
Schmidt's political opponent and former state Sen. Tom Brinkman,
said if the committee
moves forward with an investigation, it could opt to reprimand,
censure or expel Schmidt from the House.
But Krikorian also said there may be another indirect impact - that
ethics allegations might cause fellow Republicans to eliminate her
seat during redistricting.
Joe Jansen, chief of staff for Schmidt, said Schmidt fully intends
to pay her legal bills, but has asked the House Ethics Committee
to determine whether she should pay via a trust or through her
congressional campaign fund.
Melanie Sloan of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington
said the charges may have merit. "The fact is she can't take free
legal help," she said. "That's pretty much black and white."
Jessica Wehrman
Middletown Journal
http://www.middletownjournal.com/news/ohio-news/charges-against-congresswoman-schmidt-studied-1202543.html
July 7 2011
Ohio
House committee to decide if a violation has occurred
WASHINGTON - An announcement earlier this month that a House panel
was weighing a course of action regarding possible ethics violations
by local U.S. Rep. Jean Schmidt is the latest chapter in what has
been a three-year dispute involving a defamation suit, allegations of
"blood money," and a clash over a 1915 feud between Turkey and Armenia.
David Krikorian, who ran against Schmidt, R-Loveland, twice as an
independent in 2008 and lost the Democratic nomination for the seat
in 2010, is accusing the congresswoman of improperly accepting free
legal help from the Turkish Coalition of America.
Schmidt's congressional
district covers southern Warren County and part of Hamilton County
and several counties east of Cincinnati.
Earlier this month, the House Ethics Committee
said it had received a referral on a case involving Schmidt and
would decide on a course of action by Aug. 16. In a press release
announcing the move, the committee said the referral does not indicate
"that any violation has occurred, or reflect any judgment on behalf
of the committee."
The committee did not specify what charges it was investigating,
but Krikorian has asked House watchdogs to weigh in on the issue.
Krikorian, who is of Armenian descent, has had a long-standing feud
with Schmidt since their 2008 race. During that race, he circulated
campaign materials claiming Schmidt had accepted "blood money" from
Turkish interests in exchange for her opposition to a congressional
resolution declaring the 1915 conflict a genocide.
Schmidt responded by asking the Ohio Elections Commission to
investigate whether the materials violated election law, arguing the
flier was based on false statements. The Ohio Elections Commission
ultimately sided with Schmidt.
Schmidt later filed a $6.8 million defamation suit against Krikorian,
which is still pending.
Now, Krikorian said Schmidt has unethically accepted free legal help
for those cases from the Turkish Coalition of America and its Turkish
American Legal Defense Fund. As evidence, he cites a transcript from
the Ohio Elections Commission case in which Schmidt attorney Bruce
Fein said the Turkish American Legal Defense Fund had not charged the
campaign for legal services and "we would not charge them legal fees."
"The facts show Schmidt never intended to pay all the money back,"
Krikorian said.
Krikorian's lawyer, Christopher Finney, who also has represented
Schmidt's political opponent and former state Sen. Tom Brinkman,
said if the committee
moves forward with an investigation, it could opt to reprimand,
censure or expel Schmidt from the House.
But Krikorian also said there may be another indirect impact - that
ethics allegations might cause fellow Republicans to eliminate her
seat during redistricting.
Joe Jansen, chief of staff for Schmidt, said Schmidt fully intends
to pay her legal bills, but has asked the House Ethics Committee
to determine whether she should pay via a trust or through her
congressional campaign fund.
Melanie Sloan of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington
said the charges may have merit. "The fact is she can't take free
legal help," she said. "That's pretty much black and white."