GOP Rep. Edwards urges colleagues to reject censure over harassment allegations

Republican Rep. Chuck Edwards of North Carolina is urging his House colleagues to reject a recommendation for censure from the Ethics Committee, arguing in a detailed letter that his conduct toward two former female staffers was mischaracterized as sexual harassment. The committee’s report, released earlier this month, found Edwards engaged in a pattern of unprofessional and inappropriate behavior and recommended the formal rebuke. In the letter, which was distributed to congressional offices this week, Edwards contends that the committee’s findings do not support the label of sexual harassment.