Speaker Nancy Pelosi released a statement late Wednesday, on Thanksgiving eve, that she expects a House Ethics committee report on the questioned dealings of Ways and Means Committee chairman Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) to be completed by Jan. 3.

Pelosi's statement followed two days of renewed questions regarding Rangel, after a New York Times article reported he "was instrumental in preserving a lucrative tax loophole that benefited an oil-drilling company last year, while at the same time its chief executive was pledging $1 million" to help fund a new City College of New York school of public service that will be named in Rangel's honor.

This latest New York Times story was followed the next day by an editorial in the same paper, which called on Pelosi to ensure the ethics investigation was moving forward. "We hope that Speaker Nancy Pelosi is shocked into action. She should insist that the ethics investigation move forward -- and that Mr. Rangel relinquish his chairmanship during the inquiry. If Mr. Rangel continues to resist, the speaker should permanently reassign the gavel. In a deep economic crisis, the committee, and the country, cannot afford the distraction," the Times editorialized.

The Washington Post jumped into the fray as well, writing Saturday that Rangel "should step aside as chairman while the ethics committee expands its inquiry."

National Journal's Richard E. Cohen, one of the most knowledgeable and well-sourced House reporters, wrote in Congress Daily on Friday that Rangel "faces a potential double-barreled challenge when the new Congress convenes in January: House members could seek to force a vote on whether he should get another two years in his powerful post; at the same time the House Ethics Committee is scheduled to issue a report on its investigation of several news reports about his possible ethical violations."

What's ahead for Rangel remains unknown, but one thing is for sure: Pelosi will not be able to side-step this investigation, as all eyes are on the chairman of this powerful tax-writing committee.

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