Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick will go before the House Ethics Committee Thursday for allegations that she stole $5 million in FEMA funds. File Photo by Cristobal Herrera-Ulashkevich/UPI | License Photo
The House Ethics Committee will have a rare public hearing Thursday on allegations that Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, D-Fla., stole $5 million in Federal Emergency Management Agency funds and used some of it to finance her campaign.
Depending on the outcome of the 2 p.m. EDT hearing, the committee could recommend expulsion from the House of Representatives. While House Republicans are already trying to oust her, Democrats are waiting to see what the hearing reveals.
“We believe that Rep. Cherfilus-McCormick has an opportunity to defend herself both from the allegations here under the dome as well as those in a courtroom,” The Hill reported Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., said. “After the conclusion of those, we will see what happens.”
Cherfilus-McCormick, who maintains her innocence, was indicted in November on the federal charges along with her brother, Edwin Cherfilus.
“This is an unjust, baseless, sham indictment — and I am innocent,” she said in a statement. “The timing alone is curious and clearly meant to distract from far more pressing national issues. From day one, I have fully cooperated with every lawful request, and I will continue to do so until this matter is resolved.”
Cherfilus-McCormick has tried to postpone the hearing because she is unable to speak freely due to the pending federal case.
“While I am limited in what I can address due to an ongoing federal matter, I have cooperated fully within those constraints,” The Hill reported she said. “I welcome the opportunity to set the record straight and challenge these inaccuracies when I am legally able to do so.”
She requested the committee “follow its own precedents and uphold fairness and not allow this process to be driven by politics or numbers.”
Cherfilus-McCormick’s family owns Trinity Healthcare Services. The company had a FEMA-funded contract to register people for COVID-19 vaccines, but in July 2021 was accidentally overpaid by $5 million by a Florida agency, the indictment said. Instead of returning the funds, Cherfilus-McCormick allegedly moved the money to different accounts “to disguise its source,” the Justice Department said. She then allegedly used some of the funds to finance her campaign.
The hearing will be conducted by an adjudicatory committee made up of four Democrats and four Republicans to decide if the allegations “have been proved by clear and convincing evidence” and “make findings of fact.”
The hearing will be public, according to House rules, but can be made private if the committee votes to do so. On Wednesday, the committee said it would start the hearing by considering Cherfilus-McCormick’s request to close the hearing to the public.
Cherfilus-McCormick was elected to Congress in 2022 in a special election to replace Democratic Rep. Alcee Hastings, who died in 2021 from pancreatic cancer.
An investigative subcommittee had been investigating for a while before her indictment and in January released a 59-page statement of its findings.
Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., filed a resolution to expel her from the House but held off on forcing a vote until the subcommittee releases its findings.
“$5 million, 15 indictments — like, if she’s found guilty on all 15 of those charges, she’s going to serve 53 years in prison,” The Hill reported Steube said.
This week in Washington
First lady Melania Trump speaks during the Fostering the Future Together Global Coalition Summit roundtable event in the East Room of the White House on Wednesday. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo
