Do the right thing

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson did the right thing last week when he withdrew as President-elect Barack Obama's nominee for Commerce Secretary because of an ongoing federal investigation. Prominent members of the Democratic majority in Congress who operate under similar clouds should pay heed.

Gov. Richardson rightly feared that his nomination would be compromised by a probe into allegations that his own administration in New Mexico traded government contracts for campaign contributions. He said he is confident he will be cleared, but only after further investigation. "I could not in good conscience ask the President-elect and his administration" to wait for that, he said.

Similarly, the reputation of the Democratic majority in Congress for probity suffers from unresolved charges against New York Rep. Charles Rangel, Ways and Means Committee chairman, and of Connecticut Sen. Christopher Dodd, Banking Committee chairman.

Rep. Rangel is a perfect storm of embarrassment for his party. He has been charged with occupying several rent-controlled New York apartments when he was only entitled to one, taking tax breaks for residences in both Washington, D.C., and New York when he was only entitled to one, failing to report rental income from a vacation home, and arranging tax breaks for donors to the Charles B. Rangel School of Public Service at City College of New York.

Sen. Dodd was the beneficiary of two loans arranged by the president of Countrywide Financial, a major player in the collapse of the housing market, and he was also the sponsor of legislation allegedly helping Bank of America after it purchased Countrywide. Sen. Dodd has been criticized for refusing to release the details of the two loans which would clarify whether he received preferential treatment. As long as he stonewalls, Sen. Dodd will be an embarrassment to his party.

Democratic candidates in 2006 ran successfully against what they described as a Republican culture of corruption and promised to clean things up. That promise has been greatly undermined by Rep. Rangel and Sen. Dodd. If they do not have the grace to step aside as chairmen while under investigation, their colleagues should intervene.