The House Ethics Committee announced Wednesday that it will create a new subcommittee tasked with investigating a wide swath of allegations against Rep. Cory Mills (R-Fla.).
That includes whether he violated campaign finance laws, received special favors in his position, engaged in sexual misconduct, and misused congressional resources, according to a press release. The committee has yet to select members who will serve on the subcommittee.
The announcement comes after Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) introduced a resolution Wednesday to censure her Republican colleague and remove him from committees.
“These allegations are far too serious to ignore,” Mace said in a statement. “A Member of Congress accused of assaulting women, profiting off federal contracts from his seat, and inflating or falsifying his service record has no business anywhere near national-security committees. This isn’t about partisan politics, it’s about protecting the integrity of this institution and the safety of women.”
Mace said on X that the House Ethics Committee plan is a “naked attempt” to kill her resolution.
But Mills blasted Mace’s resolution effort in a statement, arguing that it’s a “politically motivated attempt to grab headlines and settle personal scores.”
“The American people deserve better than fabricated accusations and theatrics at a time when Republicans should be focused on governing,” he wrote.
The alleged controversies surrounding Mills have been a headache for House Republican leadership. Last year, the Office of Congressional Ethics found that there was “substantial reason to believe” Mills may have “omitted or misrepresented” mandatory information in his financial disclosure statements and “entered into, enjoyed, or held contracts with federal agencies,” among other matters.
More recently, a Florida county judge had granted a restraining order against Mills that an ex-girlfriend requested. She accused him of harassing and threatening her after they broke up.
Democrats had unveiled three different efforts to censure Mills in recent months, but each was a retaliatory threat in response to a Republican attempt to censure a Democrat. The censures of those Democrats failed, so Democrats declined to force votes on censuring Mills.
Mace’s resolution comes after three House Republicans on Tuesday joined Democrats in rejecting a resolution to censure Democratic Del. Stacey Plaskett (Virgin Islands) for texting with late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein during a 2019 congressional hearing.
Some House Republicans had claimed a deal was made to protect Plaskett in exchange for Democrats sparing Mills, though the Republicans who voted “no” on the Plaskett censure denied that.
And Mills said on X that “there was no backroom deal, no negotiation, and no quid pro quo of any kind that would’ve forced the Democrats to stand down on that vote against me. Anyone pushing that narrative is just wrong.”
Emily Brooks contributed.
Updated at 7:25 p.m. EDT