George Miller: “Mr. Speaker and Members of the House, we know that the members of the Ethics Committee, none of them has asked for this…”

“Mr. Speaker and Members of the House, we know that the members of the Ethics Committee, none of them has asked for this assignment and none of us hopes we ever are chosen to carry it out. We know that the leadership has exercised its judgment on both sides of the aisle, to pick people for this committee whom they trust, they respect, and they expect to discharge their duties to the House and to the country. This is done so that we can assure the public and our colleagues that justice will be carried out and that the public interest and the public trust will be protected. This process should not be subject to political pressure. As difficult as that political pressure might be for Members of the House, we should in fact recognize that the process must work to the end of achieving justice and protecting the public interest. The members of this Ethics Committee were picked by the Speaker and the minority leader of the House. They have discharged their duty throughout history in a rather admirable fashion, based upon the principles that each case would be taken care of and protected so that justice would be carried out.”