Nation : Ethics Panel Suspends Wright Probe

Ranking members of the House Ethics Committee abruptly suspended their inquiry today after businessmen failed to appear to testify about a lucrative oil investment that benefited House Speaker Jim Wright’s blind trust.

Committee Chairman Rep. Julian C. Dixon (D-Los Angeles) said witnesses scheduled to appear for questioning are being represented by a Washington law firm, which told the panel the witnesses would not be available.

“That law firm has informed us that the witness will not attend today or tomorrow, so we have recessed our hearing,” Dixon said. Rep. John T. Myers of Indiana, ranking Republican on the committee, said, “We don’t have cooperative witnesses.”