Rep. Darrell Issa's name got inadvertently hijacked on Thursday by an outside group wanting to use the California Republican's cache to boost fundraising numbers. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call File Photo) Had Issa, chairman of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee, sanctioned the email from the Armed Forces Foundation, it could have run afoul of House ethics rules, in part because it appeared to have been written on official congressional letterhead. The Ethics Committee doesn't allow members to solicit funds for private organizations using congressional resources lest it suggest a conflict of interest. Such concerns predate this week's flub, though, by at least 50 years. That was when then-Rep. Bob Taft Jr., R-Ohio, introduced legislation to bar "improper" use of congressional stationery. (more…)
