Condit’s Troubles Mount

The legal and political troubles of Rep. Gary A. Condit (D-Ceres) intensified Sunday, with colleagues calling for an ethics investigation and an attorney threatening legal action on behalf of a woman who says she had an affair with the congressman.

As the sensational case of Condit and his relationship with missing intern Chandra Levy dominated another round of Sunday TV talk shows, one Republican lawmaker, Rep. Scott McInnis of Colorado, called for the beleaguered congressman to resign.

At the least, McInnis said, the House Ethics Committee should investigate Condit, a suggestion endorsed by other lawmakers.

Rep. Charles B. Rangel (D-N.Y.) called Condit’s behavior “embarrassing.” But he questioned whether the ethics panel has justification to conduct an investigation.

“What do we charge him with?” Rangel asked on “Fox News Sunday.” “A bad television performance?”

Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe said he was “very disappointed” in Condit’s statements last week about his relationship with Levy and his dealings with the police. Condit discussed the controversy in his first public comments about the 24-year-old intern.

“I wish he had been more forthcoming,” McAuliffe said on CBS’ “Face the Nation.”

The chorus of criticism underscores the difficulty Condit faces as members of Congress prepare to return to Washington from summer recess. A CNN poll of voters in Condit’s district found sentiment running 2 to 1 against the lawmaker’s reelection.

Police have said that Condit, who reportedly acknowledged in his third police interview that he had an affair with Levy, is not a suspect in her disappearance.

Jim Robinson, attorney for flight attendant Anne Marie Smith, told ABC’s “This Week” that he planned to initiate legal action against Condit, perhaps as early as today, for denying an extramarital affair with his client.

“Well, certainly he defamed my client,” Robinson said. “He slandered her. He libeled her. All of the above. We have several causes of action.”

Condit’s attorney, Abbe Lowell, told NBC’s “Meet the Press” that “he answered the questions, except he’s not the kind of guy who’s going to go on national television and say the word that people want him to have said.”

In this week’s Newsweek, Condit said he regretted that in last week’s interview with ABC-TV that he didn’t say “how disheartened and heartbroken” he was over Levy’s disappearance.

Asked about his relationship with Smith, Condit told the magazine, “It would probably be her definition of a relationship versus mine.”

Condit told Newsweek he received words of encouragement from the White House--”a pat on the back or hang in there.”

However, Rep. David Dreier (R-San Dimas) told CNN’s “Late Edition” that while someone might have offered encouragement early on, “I can’t imagine that in the last week or two that people in the White House have been calling and providing encouragement in light of these very troubling questions. . . . “

In calling for Condit to resign, McInnis said: “I think his conduct is inappropriate, and it brings discredit to the institution of the United States Congress.”

Rep. Bob Barr (R-Ga.) in July called for an Ethics Committee investigation into Condit’s conduct.