<p>Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC) stated that the Ethics Committee’s decision not to recommend punishment for California Democrat Eric Swalwell, who resigned earlier this year over sexual misconduct allegations, influenced his vote against the censure of Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-NC).</p>
<p>In an interview with the Washington Examiner, Norman expressed his refusal to support what he termed the “herd effect” against Edwards, following the committee's findings that indicated Edwards failed to adhere to rules prohibiting sexual harassment and unwanted advances toward House staffers. Edwards also voted against his own censure.</p>
<p>“One, I wasn’t going to leave him out there by himself,” Norman explained. “Two, the Ethics Committee would not censure Swalwell; he was sleeping with everybody in the world. Now, I know he resigned. Congresswoman Plaskett was colluding with Jeffrey Epstein, a pedophile, did not get that,” he added.</p>
<p>Edwards’s censure occurred amid the resignations of three House lawmakers this year—Swalwell, Texas Republican Tony Gonzales, and Florida Democrat Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick—who faced various misconduct allegations but were not censured prior to their resignations.</p>
<p>The House also halted a censure introduced by Norman against Democratic Virgin Islands Del. Stacey Plaskett last year regarding her text messages with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein in 2019.</p>
<p>Norman noted that because other lawmakers were not censured, many Republicans indicated they would not support punishing Edwards. Ultimately, only Norman and Edwards voted against the resolution.</p>
<p>“There were a lot of people that said they were not going to vote to do it because of just what I told you, but there’s a cascade. I’m not gonna follow a crowd. I’m just not gonna do it,” Norman stated.</p>
<p>Norman, who previously lost bids for South Carolina governor and Senate, expressed surprise at being the sole dissenting vote, mentioning that Edwards thanked him for his support.</p>
<p>Following the committee's report, which detailed Edwards inviting young female staffers to dinner, giving them gifts, and discussing visits to strip clubs, Edwards dropped his reelection bid. His campaign denied that any findings violated federal sexual harassment laws.</p>
<p>“I’m asking you to distinguish between conduct that you might personally have handled differently, and conduct that warrants the solemn judgment of censure by the United States House of Representatives,” Edwards stated on the House floor prior to the vote. “I’ve spent my public life trying to serve the people who entrusted me with this office. I am imperfect. I have made mistakes, but I do not believe I committed sexual harassment, and the factual findings of this investigation do not justify branding me as though I did.”</p>