Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) "targets government officials who sacrifice the common good to special interests" and "will help Americans use litigation to shine a light on those who betray the public trust," according to its website.

Methods
CREW uses the following methods to try to keep officials honest:
 * Litigation
 * Freedom of Information Act Requests
 * Ethics Complaints
 * Internal Revenue Service Complaints
 * Federal Election Commission Complaints
 * Requests for investigations

Example of CREW's work
In 2007, CREW asked U.S. Senator Charles E. Grassley (R-IA) to investigate Stephen A. Moses who poses as an independent expert in long-term care insurance. The CREW website states, "CREW sent a letter to U.S. Senator Grassley (R-IA), ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, asking that he initiate an investigation into Moses and his organization, for posing as an independent expert from a respected think tank, rather than his true role as a front man for the long-term care industry. Additionally, this past December, CREW sent letters to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and the National Association of State Medicaid Directors warning them of Mr. Moses’ ties to the long-term care insurance industry in advance of his national tour.

"According to his website, www.centerltc.com, Moses has testified as an independent expert on long-term care before two-thirds of the nation’s state legislatures and has been actively working to create legislation to benefit the industry in states throughout the country. Moses is not, however, actually independent."

Top ten ethics scandals of 2007
CREW lists the following as the top ten ethics scandals in 2007:


 * No new enforcement mechanisms for congressional ethics
 * Ted Stevens still sitting on Senate Appropriations
 * Senate Ethics Committee looking into Sen. Craig, but not Sen. Vitter
 * Millions of missing White House emails still unaccounted for
 * Rep. Murtha’s abuse of the earmarking process remains unchecked
 * Lurita Doan remains chief of GSA (U.S. General Services Administration) despite illegal conduct
 * White House covering up its role in the firings of the U.S. Attorneys
 * No Child Left Behind funds directed to Bush fundraisers who provide inadequate reading materials for kids
 * Court decision regarding search of William Jefferson’s office limits ability of DOJ (U.S. Department of Justice) to investigate other corrupt lawmakers
 * FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) knowingly let Hurricane Katrina victims live in hazardous trailers

Top Ten Ethics Scandals of 2008
CREW lists the following as the top ten ethics scandals in 2008:
 * Unchecked Congressional Ethics
 * No Guarantee that Bush Administration Records will be Properly Archived
 * Speech or Debate Clause
 * The Pay-to-Play Congress
 * Enriching Family with Campaign Cash
 * Controversial Presidential Pardons
 * Veteran's Administration Officials Intentionally Misdiagnosing PTSD
 * Bailout Oversight
 * Political Calculations Dictate Border Fence Placement
 * A Politicized Bush Justice Department

Staff
Source
 * Melanie Sloan, Executive Director
 * Naomi Seligman Steiner, Deputy Director and Communications Director
 * Anne L. Weismann, Chief Counsel
 * Keith Ashdown, Research Director
 * Tim Mooney, Senior Counsel
 * Kimberly Perkins, Counsel
 * Dan Roth, Counsel
 * Miles Grant, Communications and Outreach Associate
 * Lida Masoudpour, Special Projects Associate
 * Jacob Parakilas, Executive Assistant
 * Robin Powers, Research Associate
 * Mayanna Prak, Business Manager

Funding
CREW is funded in part by individuals who are members of the Democracy Alliance.

Contact details
1400 Eye Street NW Suite 450 Washington, D.C. 20005 Phone: (202) 408-5565 Web: http://www.citizensforethics.org

Related SourceWatch articles

 * Democracy Alliance
 * Ethics in Congress
 * Ethics Resource Center
 * Federal ethics legislation
 * Prospects for Ethics Reform in the 110th Congress
 * Watchdog organizations

Articles About CREW

 * Greg Gordon, "Watchdog: Bush Ex-Officials Used Leverage in Private Sector", McClatchy, January 12, 2009.
 * Steve Tetreault, "Ethics Panel Gets Complaints on Ensign", Las Vegas Review-Journal, June 25, 2009.
 * John Nichols, Congressman Eric Cantor, R-Unethical, The Nation, July 24, 2009.
 * Tom Foreman, "Washington’s Secret Society", AC360, July 24, 2009.