Washington — On a day his wife was front and center, Rep. John Conyers, D-Detroit, stayed in the shadows.
Conyers was inside his office in the federal courthouse Wednesday and expressed an interest in attending his wife’s sentencing hearing, but advisers told him he shouldn’t, sources said. Conyers, who chairs the House Judiciary Committee, missed votes on the House floor for the second day in a row.
Conyers’ office did not issue a statement, nor did staff respond to repeated inquiries.
Tom Fitton, president of Judicial Watch and a longtime Conyers critic, Wednesday called on him to resign his chairmanship due to former Detroit Councilwoman Monica Conyers’ legal troubles.
“Appearances count,” Fitton said. “He’s the wrong person to head the Judiciary Committee.”
But several members of the Michigan delegation spoke up for John Conyers, as did House Speaker Nancy Pelosi .
“It’s his wife, not him,” said Rep. John Dingell, D-Dearborn, the dean of the House.
Rep. Dale Kildee, D-Flint, added of Conyers, “he’s doing his job. His wife is a different person.”
Rep. Thad McCotter, R-Livonia, said he hadn’t heard of any effort by fellow House Republicans to go after Conyers.
“I have not heard he’s in any danger,” McCotter said. “There’s certainly not been any strategizing (by Republicans). It’s not analogous to what (Charles) Rangel is going through,” he added, referring to the New York Democrat whose ethics problems prompted him recently to step down as House Ways and Means Committee chairman.
Pelosi spokesman Drew Hammill said, “Chairman Conyers’ chairmanship is based on his respected leadership in the House.”
While John Conyers kept a low profile Tuesday, he has maintained a busy schedule.
He’s also kept up his fundraising, bringing in $168,371 in the final quarter of last year, and his staff has said he intends to run for re-election.
The scandal around his wife is unlikely to hurt Conyers in Washington, says Larry Sabato, director of the politics center at the University of Virginia and author of “Feeding Frenzy: How Attack Journalism Has Transformed America.”
“Notice how little news it’s making (inside the Beltway),” Sabato said. “People now see us as living in an era of couples with two careers, with each responsible for their own behavior.
“He’s given a pass. He’s secure in his district and with the (Democratic) leadership.”
Detroit News Staff Writer Leonard Fleming contributed.
From The Detroit News:
