Political Memo - Given G.O.P. Predicament, Rangel Opts to Ride Out the Storm - NYTimes.com WASHINGTON - This week, with Representative Charles B. Rangel of New York on the verge of stepping down from the chairmanship of the House Ways and Means Committee, Democrats hatched a plan to foil Republicans trying to capitalize on his ethical troubles. Their message would go like this: Where Mr. Rangel was doing the right thing, vacating his position pending the outcome of a House ethics investigation, two Republicans had refused to do the same. And unlike Mr. Rangel, those lawmakers - Representatives Jerry Lewis of California and Don Young of Alaska - were known to be under active criminal investigation while serving earlier as senior Republicans of other committees. In the end, Mr. Rangel decided that he could ride out the storm, in part, officials close to him say, because Mr. Lewis and Mr. Young were just two names on a long list of current and former Republican lawmakers with legal troubles that, Democrats believe, make it impossible for Republicans to gain much ground on the issues of ethics and good government. House leaders, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi, have not pushed for Mr. Rangel to step aside. Without formal charges, or official findings by the House ethics committee, there is little basis to pressure him out of his post, even temporarily. And in a big election year, there is little desire to curtail his prodigious fund-raising. Even Representative Paul E. Kanjorski of Pennsylvania, considered one of the most vulnerable Democratic incumbents this year, is pressing ahead with a fund-raiser in Washington next week that will feature Mr. Rangel as the marquee guest. Mr. Kanjorski has shrugged off questions about his political ties to Mr. Rangel, instead pointing out that his opponent, Lou Barletta, once accepted a campaign contribution from Senator Ted Stevens, Republican of Alaska, who was indicted in July on charges of failing to report $250,000 in gifts from political supporters. "Charlie Rangel is a distinguished member of Congress who has done much for this country," said Ed Mitchell, a spokesman for the Kanjorski campaign. We're happy to be associated with him. "When they return the money they received from Senator Stevens," Mr. Mitchell added, "we'll think about canceling the Rangel fund-raiser." Still, Republicans see an opportunity to cite Mr. Rangel as evidence that Ms. Pelosi and other Democrats who made Republican corruption a top issue in the 2006 elections have now ceded the high ground. "Nancy Pelosi and the Democrat-led Congress officially abandoned their promise to run the most ethical Congress in history and instead embraced the politics of corruption with open arms," said Ken Spain, a spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee. Any Democrats running for office who refuse to give up Charlie Rangel's tainted cash have officially forfeited the mantle of change they claim to be running on. In perhaps any other year, Mr. Rangel's ethical problems might be an extremely potent political weapon for Republicans. The powerful chairman of the House tax-writing committee, he has admitted that he failed to properly report rental income from a vacation home in the Dominican Republic and owes back taxes as a result. He also faces accusations that he improperly occupied four rent-stabilized apartments in New York and used one as a campaign office. But this year the Republicans are in an unusual predicament, with several of their own lawmakers facing more serious legal problems than Mr. Rangel. One case in point is that of Senator Stevens, though Alaska Republicans made an audacious play this week in calling on his Democratic opponent, Mayor Mark Begich of Anchorage, to return $10,000 in contributions from Mr. Rangel, who, unlike the senator, is under no criminal charges. After Mr. Stevens was indicted in July, Republican candidates across the country returned or gave to charity thousands of dollars they had received from him. While Mr. Begich announced on Tuesday that he would similarly donate the money he had received from Mr. Rangel, he was more than happy to accuse Alaska Republicans of a double standard in making no such demand of Republican candidates when Mr. Stevens was charged. "How ironic," his campaign wrote in a press release. Senator Stevens goes to trial next week on seven federal felony counts. A spokesman for the Alaska Republican Party, McHugh Pierre, drew a contrast between the two cases. "Rangel's attorney has openly said that he didn't pay taxes," Mr. Pierre said. Stevens says he is innocent. That's the difference. But other Republicans seeking to capitalize on Mr. Rangel's troubles are likely to find themselves on similarly tough terrain. For instance, should Senator John McCain of Arizona, the Republican presidential nominee, raise any questions, Democrats will certainly point to Representative Rick Renzi, the Arizona Republican and former state chairman of the McCain campaign, who is awaiting trial on dozens of felony charges, including money laundering, extortion and insurance fraud. Tucker Bounds, a spokesman for the McCain campaign, said Mr. Rangel was fair game. "I suspect as Chairman Rangel's problems compound, he will become more and more a part of the conversation in this presidential election," Mr. Bounds said. John McCain and Governor Palin's record of reforming Washington and rooting out corruption is exactly what unethical and misbehaving members of Congress should fear. On Thursday, the House Republican leader, Representative John A. Boehner of Ohio, put forward his latest motion seeking to remove Mr. Rangel from the Ways and Means chairmanship. Democrats quickly won a vote to table the measure, but it is clear that Mr. Boehner will not let the issue drop until Congress recesses next week for the fall campaign. If Mr. Rangel is feeling much in the way of shame, he is not showing it. He has given a lengthy speech on the House floor defending himself, and his lawyer said this week that he would stay on as chairman while also hiring a private forensic accounting firm to clear things up. Mr. Rangel has promised to pay any back taxes that he owes. He has also called for the ethics committee to investigate, a move that Speaker Pelosi has applauded even as she stands by him. "I see no reason why Mr. Rangel should step down," she said at a news conference this week.