The House expels Myers

Ever since throwing out two Confederate members as traitors in 1861, the House of Representatives has taken a tolerant view of rascality in its ranks. Only rarely has the House taken formal notice of a colleague's misdeeds--and then, at worst, it has merely censured the offender verbally or, in a few cases, stripped him of seniority and committee chairmanships. This fraternal forbearance stemmed partly from the Representatives' clubby regard for one another and partly from their belief that in a democracy, voters have the right to be represented by whomever they wish--even a crook. The era of tolerance apparently ended last week.

At issue was the fate of Pennsylvania Congressman Michael ("Ozzie") Myers, 37, who had been captured on FBI video tape accepting $50,000 from an agent posing as the representative of a fictitious Arab sheik. Myers was heard promising in return to sponsor special legislation that would enable the sheik to settle in the U.S. The tapes had been used by the Justice Department to convict Myers in August of bribery in the first of its series of ABSCAM prosecutions involving six Congressmen. (A U.S. appeals court ruled last week that the ABSCAM tapes introduced in evidence in the Myers case could be copied and broadcast by television stations, but granted time for Myers' attorneys to appeal the decision to the Supreme Court.) Said Myers at the time of his conviction: "The jury was confused. I may be guilty of being an ass, but I have done nothing criminal."

But the members of the House Ethics Committee, as well as other Representatives who watched the tapes, could find no innocent explanation for what they saw and no reason to delay their vote on Myers until after his appeal of the conviction is completed.

In the four-hour debate before crowded galleries, Ethics Committee Chairman Charles Bennett of Florida urged that Myers be expelled because "the integrity of the House of Representatives is at stake." Argued New York Democrat Jonathan Bingham: "It is immaterial whether or not there has been a final conviction. He was selling his services for a substantial sum of money. Myers has brought shame on himself and on this House...To take any lesser action than expulsion would, I'm afraid, be further proof to our disillusioned young people that Congress protects its own and condones influence peddling."

Wearing a funereal black suit and speaking from the well of the chamber, Myers did not deny taking the money. Said he: "I owe this House an apology for my action." But he insisted that accepting the money was "strictly play-acting" because he never intended to do anything in return. He complained: "I was set up from the word go." In one meeting with the sheik's intermediary, Myers said, "I was intoxicated. I was drinking FBI bourbon." Myers, a former longshoreman, contended that he was not used to hard liquor. Turning bitter, he charged that "I was not given a fair trial" by the House, and accused the members of "lynching" him. Protesting that "I know now what it feels like to sit on death row," Myers warned the members that their votes to expel him would have the same effect as "hitting the button if I were strapped into an electric chair." Few legislators were moved. The vote to expel Myers was 376 to 30.