GOP Women’s Caucus chair says House should follow through on Edwards censure
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Rep. Kat Cammack (R-Fla.), chair of the Republican Women’s Caucus, on Wednesday said the House should follow through with a censure of Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-N.C.) despite his decision to drop his reelection bid.
Edwards’s decision came after the House Ethics Committee on Monday recommended that he be formally censured following an investigation that found he violated the “spirit” of the chamber’s policies on sexual harassment of staff.
Cammack said in a statement that when Edwards ran for Congress, “he promised to restore honor and integrity to the office. Based on the bipartisan House Ethics Committee’s findings, he failed to live up to that promise.”
“The Ethics Committee recommended censure, and the House should follow through. A resignation announcement does not erase misconduct or absolve a Member of accountability. No one should be permitted to run out the clock and avoid the consequences of their actions,” she added.
The House Ethics Committee report said Edwards had engaged in “highly unprofessional” conduct with two female members of his staff that “made the women feel uncomfortable, and/or gave the appearance of a sexual or romantic advance.”
That conduct included bringing the staffers on extravagant outings and trips; writing poems for a staffer and crying during a slideshow at her going-away office party; telling a staffer he left early from an event because she brought a date; sending personal texts late in the evenings; paying for massages and spa treatments for the staffers; and paying for a singer to go to a staffer’s birthday party to sing a surprise song, according to the report.
The panel’s recommended censure resolution does not explicitly accuse him of sexual harassment or call for Edwards to be removed from committees or face other consequences, but it does call for the chamber to adopt the report on the ethics panel’s findings.
Paul Shumaker, a campaign spokesperson for Edwards, said in a statement on Monday — prior to the North Carolina Republican dropping out of the race — that “the Committee findings completely exonerate Representative Edwards under the House rules governing sexual misconduct or harassment; they contradict the committee’s conclusion.”
Counsel for Edwards, in a 15-page formal response to the committee’s findings, said that the panel found the congressman “neither engaged in sexual activity with nor explicitly propositioned any individual staff member,” did not implicate quid pro quo sexual harassment, and did not violate federal sexual harassment law. It said the recommendation for censure was based on “vague standards requiring credible behavior and adherence to the spirit of the Rules of the House” rather than rules violating sexual misconduct.
Cammack and Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.), chair of the Democratic Women’s Caucus, launched a bipartisan task force in May aimed at combating sexual misconduct in the workplace. Both women are working on a measure that would prohibit romantic relationships between members of Congress and all staffers. Under current House rules, lawmakers are barred from engaging in relationships with employees under their direct supervision and staff members of committees on which they serve.
“The Republican Women’s Caucus has spent months working with congressional employees, House administrators, and our colleagues in the Democratic Women’s Caucus to strengthen protections against sexual misconduct, safeguard staff, and restore accountability on Capitol Hill. Every person who works on Capitol Hill deserves a safe, professional workplace, and every Member should be held to that standard,” Cammack said.
Emily Brooks contributed to this report.
Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Read the full story at Axios ↗ · The Hill ↗
Rep. Kat Cammack (R-Fla.), chair of the Republican Women’s Caucus, on Wednesday said the House should follow through with a censure of Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-N.C.) despite his…
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Rep. Kat Cammack (R-Fla.), chair of the Republican Women’s Caucus, on Wednesday said the House should follow through with a censure of Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-N.C.) despite his decision to drop his reelection bid.
Edwards’s decision came after the House Ethics Committee on Monday recommended that he be formally censured following an investigation that found he violated the “spirit” of the chamber’s policies on sexual harassment of staff.
Cammack said in a statement that when Edwards ran for Congress, “he promised to restore honor and integrity to the office. Based on the bipartisan House Ethics Committee’s findings, he failed to live up to that promise.”
“The Ethics Committee recommended censure, and the House should follow through. A resignation announcement does not erase misconduct or absolve a Member of accountability. No one should be permitted to run out the clock and avoid the consequences of their actions,” she added.
The House Ethics Committee report said Edwards had engaged in “highly unprofessional” conduct with two female members of his staff that “made the women feel uncomfortable, and/or gave the appearance of a sexual or romantic advance.”
That conduct included bringing the staffers on extravagant outings and trips; writing poems for a staffer and crying during a slideshow at her going-away office party; telling a staffer he left early from an event because she brought a date; sending personal texts late in the evenings; paying for massages and spa treatments for the staffers; and paying for a singer to go to a staffer’s birthday party to sing a surprise song, according to the report.
The panel’s recommended censure resolution does not explicitly accuse him of sexual harassment or call for Edwards to be removed from committees or face other consequences, but it does call for the chamber to adopt the report on the ethics panel’s findings.
Paul Shumaker, a campaign spokesperson for Edwards, said in a statement on Monday — prior to the North Carolina Republican dropping out of the race — that “the Committee findings completely exonerate Representative Edwards under the House rules governing sexual misconduct or harassment; they contradict the committee’s conclusion.”
Counsel for Edwards, in a 15-page formal response to the committee’s findings, said that the panel found the congressman “neither engaged in sexual activity with nor explicitly propositioned any individual staff member,” did not implicate quid pro quo sexual harassment, and did not violate federal sexual harassment law. It said the recommendation for censure was based on “vague standards requiring credible behavior and adherence to the spirit of the Rules of the House” rather than rules violating sexual misconduct.
Cammack and Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.), chair of the Democratic Women’s Caucus, launched a bipartisan task force in May aimed at combating sexual misconduct in the workplace. Both women are working on a measure that would prohibit romantic relationships between members of Congress and all staffers. Under current House rules, lawmakers are barred from engaging in relationships with employees under their direct supervision and staff members of committees on which they serve.
“The Republican Women’s Caucus has spent months working with congressional employees, House administrators, and our colleagues in the Democratic Women’s Caucus to strengthen protections against sexual misconduct, safeguard staff, and restore accountability on Capitol Hill. Every person who works on Capitol Hill deserves a safe, professional workplace, and every Member should be held to that standard,” Cammack said.
Emily Brooks contributed to this report.
Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Read the full story at Axios ↗ · The Hill ↗
Skip to content
Rep. Kat Cammack (R-Fla.), chair of the Republican Women’s Caucus, on Wednesday said the House should follow through with a censure of Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-N.C.) despite his decision to drop his reelection bid.
Edwards’s decision came after the House Ethics Committee on Monday recommended that he be formally censured following an investigation that found he violated the “spirit” of the chamber’s policies on sexual harassment of staff.
Cammack said in a statement that when Edwards ran for Congress, “he promised to restore honor and integrity to the office. Based on the bipartisan House Ethics Committee’s findings, he failed to live up to that promise.”
“The Ethics Committee recommended censure, and the House should follow through. A resignation announcement does not erase misconduct or absolve a Member of accountability. No one should be permitted to run out the clock and avoid the consequences of their actions,” she added.
The House Ethics Committee report said Edwards had engaged in “highly unprofessional” conduct with two female members of his staff that “made the women feel uncomfortable, and/or gave the appearance of a sexual or romantic advance.”
That conduct included bringing the staffers on extravagant outings and trips; writing poems for a staffer and crying during a slideshow at her going-away office party; telling a staffer he left early from an event because she brought a date; sending personal texts late in the evenings; paying for massages and spa treatments for the staffers; and paying for a singer to go to a staffer’s birthday party to sing a surprise song, according to the report.
The panel’s recommended censure resolution does not explicitly accuse him of sexual harassment or call for Edwards to be removed from committees or face other consequences, but it does call for the chamber to adopt the report on the ethics panel’s findings.
Paul Shumaker, a campaign spokesperson for Edwards, said in a statement on Monday — prior to the North Carolina Republican dropping out of the race — that “the Committee findings completely exonerate Representative Edwards under the House rules governing sexual misconduct or harassment; they contradict the committee’s conclusion.”
Counsel for Edwards, in a 15-page formal response to the committee’s findings, said that the panel found the congressman “neither engaged in sexual activity with nor explicitly propositioned any individual staff member,” did not implicate quid pro quo sexual harassment, and did not violate federal sexual harassment law. It said the recommendation for censure was based on “vague standards requiring credible behavior and adherence to the spirit of the Rules of the House” rather than rules violating sexual misconduct.
Cammack and Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.), chair of the Democratic Women’s Caucus, launched a bipartisan task force in May aimed at combating sexual misconduct in the workplace. Both women are working on a measure that would prohibit romantic relationships between members of Congress and all staffers. Under current House rules, lawmakers are barred from engaging in relationships with employees under their direct supervision and staff members of committees on which they serve.
“The Republican Women’s Caucus has spent months working with congressional employees, House administrators, and our colleagues in the Democratic Women’s Caucus to strengthen protections against sexual misconduct, safeguard staff, and restore accountability on Capitol Hill. Every person who works on Capitol Hill deserves a safe, professional workplace, and every Member should be held to that standard,” Cammack said.
Emily Brooks contributed to this report.
Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Read the full story at Axios ↗ · The Hill ↗
This lens runs the verified story through Cinnamon's AI — wired in the next step.
- Kat Cammack (R-Fla.), chair of the Republican Women’s Caucus, on Wednesday said the House should follow through with a censure of Rep.
- Chuck Edwards (R-N.C.) despite his…