In recent days, Rep. John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich), the longest-serving member of the House, has had his future in Congress called into question. Congress on edge over sexual harassment allegations Ryan and Pelosi are under pressure to curb harassment on Capitol Hill as accusations mount.

The specter of new sexual harassment allegations becoming public has Capitol Hill on edge, creating an atmosphere of uncertainty even as lawmakers attempt to overhaul the system of harassment reporting in Congress.

The House will take its first step to confront sexual harassment on the Hill this week. But that’s unlikely to ease pressure on Speaker Paul Ryan and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, who face a furious public and are struggling with how to grapple with the metastasizing scandal.


Further spooking lawmakers and aides across the Capitol: fear of the unknown.

In recent days, two Democratic lawmakers have faced public accusations of sexual harassment — Rep. John Conyers of Michigan, the longest-serving member of the House, and Sen. Al Franken of Minnesota — that have called into question their future in Congress. Rep. Joe Barton, a veteran Texas Republican, was forced to admit that a nude picture of him circulating online was authentic, though he emphasized it was made while he was in a relationship with a consenting adult.

A vote scheduled for Wednesday would change House rules to require training for all lawmakers and staff to prevent sexual harassment. But that would do little to squelch outrage about an unknown number of harassment accusations concealed in opaque settlement agreements and paid out over the past two decades.

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That’s putting pressure on Ryan and Pelosi to do more.

“It is a moment, and I think it’s a watershed moment,” said Rep. Barbara Comstock (R-Va.), one of the leading co-sponsors of the resolution requiring new training. “[But] this is just the first step.”

The GOP-controlled House will make another modest move in early December when it holds a hearing on whether the byzantine Office of Compliance — the body that handles harassment complaints for the House — is permitted to reveal the details of settlements, part of a broader pool of $17 million in Capital employment-related payouts since 1997. That debate could expose a slew of other lawmakers accused of harassment and roil the ranks even further.

The House Administration Committee, which is holding the hearing, is expected to delve into those previous settlements and questions about the House’s ability, and the wisdom, of publicizing already-settled instances of sexual harassment.

“The past settlements, we are looking into how we can bring more transparency to them,” Comstock said. “I think the women who were sort of forced into these nondisclosure agreements by virtue of the process. … I don’t know if there’s a way we could provide immunity or do something so that any of these women want to come forward, they can without consequence.”

In the meantime, lawmakers including Comstock and Rep. Jackie Speier (D-Calif.), who are leading the drive to reform the process for handling sexual harassment allegations, are continuing to ramp up their bipartisan efforts, hoping to keep the spotlight on the issue as much as possible even with a crowded December legislative agenda.

Comstock said members are looking at drafting a resolution in the coming weeks that would ban relationships between members or high-ranking staffers and their subordinates. In addition, another top target for lawmakers is barring members from using their office funds to confidentially settle harassment complaints, as Conyers did in 2015.

Lawmakers returning from their Thanksgiving recess got a reminder Monday that the issue isn’t going away: a news conference by Franken, who again apologized for allegations of unwanted groping, saying he was “embarrassed” and “ashamed.”

Pelosi also returned to a caucus frustrated by her praise of Conyers in a Sunday interview.

3 Things to know about Capitol Hill sexual harassment POLITICO congressional reporter Elana Schor gives a rundown of 3 Things to know about Capitol Hill sexual harassment, including what to know about the 'slush fund' that is used to settle some cases.

Asked about allegations of harassment by the 88-year-old lawmaker, Pelosi called Conyers an “icon” who had fought for women’s issues. She also questioned his accusers, even as her allies have sought to emphasize the importance of believing women’s allegations. Later, Pelosi said Conyers’ decision to step down as ranking member of the powerful House Judiciary Committee was right and that his years of service didn’t excuse allegations of harassment.

House Republican leaders haven’t had to address new allegations about sitting GOP lawmakers in recent weeks. Rep. Blake Farenthold (R-Texas) faced harassment allegations in 2013, but a lawsuit by a former aide was ultimately dropped.

Pelosi has endorsed Speier’s legislation to overhaul the compliance office, which Speier has said is “constructed to protect the institution — and to impede the victim from getting justice.” Ryan has yet to do so, but he may come under fresh pressure if more sexual harassment allegations emerge.

Across the Capitol, Republicans are bracing for a Dec. 12 Senate special election in Alabama in which GOP nominee Roy Moore has faced allegations that he pursued teenage women when he was in his 30s and initiated sexual contact with a minor.

President Donald Trump — who has also faced and denied harassment allegations — has refused to join Senate GOP leaders in denouncing Moore and cast doubt on whether the accusations should be believed. Should Moore win the race, it could plunge the chamber into a protracted debate about sexual misconduct and whether he should be expelled from the Senate.

All of which is giving grist to lawmakers hoping to reform the process by which lawmakers and staff handle sexual harassment allegations — but which will also only complicate leadership’s grip on the controversy.

