Watchdog groups are calling for an ethics investigation into a top Democrat.
His employment raises serious concerns.
A top Democrat’s suspicious side income may end his career for good.
Hawaii Democrat Rep. Kaialiʻi Kahele has sponsored bills affecting the aviation industry while working as a pilot for Hawaiian Airlines. This warrants investigation according to a watchdog group.
The congressman is a member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and its Aviation Subcommittee and co-sponsored four bills related to aviation that Hawaiian Airlines has directly lobbied the federal government for.
“The employment relationship is one that would, at a minimum, give the appearance the Member was unable to act impartially or that the employer has special access to the Member,” The Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT) wrote to the Office of Congressional Ethics in a letter.
According to House disclosures Kahele earned roughly $120,000 as a pilot in 2020, in 2021 he made $29,000, and $2,800 so far in 2022 according to House disclosures and his admission.
“Moreover, this is a case where a stricter conflict of interest analysis applies because Kahele is cosponsoring legislation and taking action as a committee member that directly affects his outside employer, which is further evidenced by Hawaiian Airlines lobbying on the bills Kahele cosponsored and the subject matter of the committee,” the watchdog also wrote.
Kahele co-sponsored The National Aviation Preparedness Plan Act, The Saracini Enhanced Aviation Safety Act, The Healthy Flights Act, and The Sustainable Skies Act during 2021.
The watchdog group also alleges the congressman of “abuse of proxy vote.”
Kahele cast 120 votes by proxy, claiming that it was “due to the ongoing public health emergency,” adding in a letter to a House clerk that he is “unable to physically attend proceedings in the House Chamber.”
Yet his social media revealed that he appeared to be attending public gatherings on a regular basis.
“For each of his 120 proxy votes, Kahele stated he was ‘unable to physically attend’ House proceedings due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” FACT writes in its letter. “However, it clearly appears that was not the reason Kahele did not vote in person for approximately three months. Rather, seemingly it was because he was attending other public and political events during this time.”
Michael Chamberlain, who directs the separate watchdog group Protect the Public’s Trust, said that financial conflicts of interest, like what is being alleged in Kahele’s case, are commonly “disappointing” and “concerning,” according to The Daily Wire.
“Even worse, when those conflicts involve financial enrichment of private actors, the need for a full investigation becomes more important and can lead to much more significant penalties,” he said.
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