Here’s what former Rep. Blake Farenthold said last December, after reports revealed he had settled a sexual harassment complaint with $84,000 of taxpayer funds: “I’m going to hand a check over this week to probably Speaker Ryan, or somebody, and say, ‘Look, here’s the amount of my settlement, give it back to the taxpayers.'”
Here’s what Farenthold’s chief of staff said in February, after the congressman announced his retirement, but had not yet made good on his commitment to refund taxpayers: “He is waiting on the advice of counsel to see what final bill is enacted,” referring to whether the Senate would pass a version of the Congressional Accountability Act.
Here’s what Farenthold said on Tuesday, just over a month after he resigned from Congress, but had still not made good on his commitment to repay the money: “I will say this on the record: I have been advised by my attorneys not to repay that. That’s why it hasn’t been repaid.”
Note how Farenthold’s interest in fulfilling his commitment waned in concert with his accountability to taxpayers. Before he was set to retire, Farenthold was eager to cut the check. After he announced his retirement, and relieved himself of the burden of a re-election battle, Farenthold was finding reasons to procrastinate. After he resigned, Farenthold had suddenly made up his mind.
The congressman has claimed recently that he “offered” to use his own funds early in the settlement process, but that House lawyers told him it would be “illegal and unethical,” as him “paying personally to resolve a dispute that I believed was totally frivolous could have been considered a bribe to the plaintiff to drop the suit.” That would seem no longer to be a problem.
Charting that progression from December to May is a worthwhile exercise insofar as it provides us all with a clean example of the craven political maneuvering that rightfully stokes cynicism among the electorate.
And don’t forget what my colleague Philip Wegmann reported on Monday — that Farenthold just landed a new gig with a port to which he funneled federal pork during his time in Congress.
