By Rema Rahman and Simone Pathé



House Republicans on Tuesday quickly reversed their position on a provision in a House Rules package that would have significantly changed how the independent Office of Congressional Ethics investigates members of Congress.

But the episode demonstrated how quickly Democratic lawmakers, progressive organizations and even some conservative-leaning groups could mobilize around efforts to “drain the swamp” and curb influence-peddling and dubious dealings in Congress.

In a meeting at the Capitol on Tuesday that lasted less than 10 minutes, Republicans agreed to strip an amendment from the rules package amid a firestorm of criticism that members were trying to gut an agency tasked with holding lawmakers accountable. The amendment was adopted during a closed-door meeting Monday night as part of a broader House rules package for the 115th session.

“Calmer heads prevailed this morning,” said Pennsylvania GOP Rep. Charlie Dent, who was chairman of the House Ethics Committee during the 114th Congress.