Word: packwood
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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What has exasperated Packwood's colleagues most is his inept handling of the ethics committee's inquiry. First he concealed the existence of his diaries from the committee. When the committee demanded all 8,200 pages, he tried to intimidate fellow Senators by warning that the release of further pages would expose other legislators' sexual dalliances...
...performance on the Senate floor last week was no better. On Monday, summoned to debate the diaries, Senators listened to Packwood deliver a rambling, ranting soliloquy that basically charged the committee with prying into his private life. Maryland Senator Barbara Mikulski countered, "We are not the Senate Select Committee on Voyeurism." When the droning debate tied up Senate business for a second full day, legislators grew impatient. Finally Tuesday evening, Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia implored his embattled colleague to sacrifice himself for the larger good: "None of us is without flaws. But when those flaws damage the institution...
Many other Senators, who are still smarting from Packwood's veiled threat of two weeks ago, privately agree that he should resign. That step not only would bring a rapid end to the ethics committee's sexual-misconduct inquiry, prompted by allegations by at least 26 women, but would also spare the Senate the discomfort of deciding what punitive action to take if the charges prove convincing (although his resignation would not prevent the women from pursuing lawsuits). If he fails to resign, the ethics committee may decide to push forward shortly with open hearings on the sexual-harassment charges...
...Packwood vows to serve out his fifth term and fight the subpoena for his diaries. Although the federal court is expected to move quickly on the Senate's request, if Packwood is not satisfied with the outcome, he threatens an appeal that "could take years." If he runs out the appeals process and still refuses to comply, Packwood could face civil contempt penalties. Meanwhile, he creates an opportunity for the committee to delve further into the possibility of criminal misconduct. Packwood's unfortunate pattern is that each attempt he makes to preserve his privacy seems to turn up the wattage...
...Packwood Saga...