In a 22-page letter, the North Carolina Republican sought to rebut an ethics report that concluded he engaged in “persistent unprofessional and inappropriate conduct.”
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Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-North Carolina) argued in a letter to colleagues Thursday that his conduct toward two young female staffers fell well short of sexual harassment and that he should not be censured by the House.
In a 22-page letter, Edwards sought to rebut an Ethics Committee report issued this month that concluded he engaged in “persistent unprofessional and inappropriate conduct” toward the staffers and should be punished with a censure.
“The report repeatedly relies upon interactions that it says ‘could be interpreted as romantic.’ But something that could be interpreted as romantic is worlds apart from establishing an unwanted sexual advance,” Edwards wrote. “An affectionate friendship is not a sexual proposition. A gift is not sexual misconduct. A compliment is not sexual misconduct. Poetry is not sexual misconduct. Socializing with a colleague is not sexual misconduct.”
The House is expected to vote on whether to censure Edwards as early as next week. Following the release of the report, Edwards said he would end his reelection bid but serve out the remainder of his term, which ends in early January.
The Ethics Committee said in its report that it found no evidence that Edwards engaged in sexual activity with or explicitly propositioned any of his staffers. However, the report found that he was aware “that his excessive attention toward the young women had led to rumors and innuendo in the office.”
The committee found that while Edwards believed that none of his conduct was intended as a sexual or romantic advance, his behavior patterns “would lead a reasonable observer to interpret it as such.”
According to the report, Edwards gave staffers “lavish and recurrent gifts,” including jewelry totaling over $1,000, designer purses, guns, shoes, flowers, a laptop and cellphones. He was also found to have made comments on their appearance and clothing and sent notes “regarding his effusive affection,” the report said.
The report said he invited staffers to “intimate dinners and vacations,” including appearing on one occasion to take a private trip to Las Vegas with a staffer. In another instance, Edwards wrote a poem for a female staffer and read it aloud at her going-away party, tearing up, the report said.
The women, the panel found, were “uncomfortable” with his behavior and attempted to communicate that to him but were “put in an untenable position by virtue of his status as their boss.”
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Rep. Kat Cammack (R-Florida), chair of the Republican Women’s Caucus, criticized Edwards’s letter, saying in a statement that it reinforced why it’s important for Congress to “strengthen workplace protections, accountability, and standards of conduct.”
“What is troubling is how much of this letter is spent defending individual interactions — and how little is spent grappling with why the pattern of conduct raised serious concerns in the first place,” Cammack wrote.
She said that while Edwards has the right to challenge the committee’s findings, members of Congress “hold extraordinary power over their staff. With that power comes a responsibility to exercise sound judgment and maintain appropriate boundaries.”
In his letter, which was first reported by the news outlet NOTUS, Edwards accused the committee of improperly inferred romantic intent from his actions, and he characterized the relationships as mentoring or familial rather than romantic.
Edwards said one female staffer called him a “second dad.” Edwards also noted that he gave gifts to male staffers too, arguing that gift-giving was part of his management style and not an attempt at courtship.
Throughout the letter, Edwards pointed to House rules, arguing that there are no guidelines explicitly prohibiting members from befriending staff or spending time together socially. Members are prohibited from having sexual relationships with their staff.
”I sent this letter because every Member of Congress deserved to hear directly from me and have the opportunity to review the facts for themselves,“ Edwards said.
Censure is one of three ways the House can choose to discipline a member, the other two being a reprimand and an expulsion. Some Democrats have called for Edwards to be expelled.
If the House adopts the committee’s recommendation to censure Edwards, it also could vote to remove him from his committee assignments. He would still be able to vote on the floor. Republicans hold a razor-thin majority in the chamber.
