Tom Rust: Chief counsel and staff director, House Ethics Committee

For nearly two decades, Tom Rust has worked behind the scenes to help police the conduct of lawmakers.

Rust joined the House Ethics Committee in 2009 after nearly a decade in private legal practice. He quickly moved up the ranks, serving as senior counsel and acting director of investigations before taking the role of staff director in 2014.

Today, Rust oversees roughly 30 staffers working across the committee’s advice, investigations and financial disclosure offices. He also advises the committee’s 10 members, who are evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats.

His work has included some of the House’s most high-profile ethics investigations.

Asked about the most interesting case he has encountered, Rust pointed to the investigation into former Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.), whom the House voted to expel in 2023. Santos was sentenced to a seven-year prison term after he pleaded guilty to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, but he was released from prison last year after President Trump commuted his sentence.

“There were just so many different issues there,” Rust said. “It was a wide-ranging case that involved allegations of criminal misconduct. It involved interactions with an ongoing criminal investigation. It was very high-profile.”

Rust said one of the most rewarding parts of his job is working with the committee members.

“If you took the transcript of our committee meeting and you took the names off the transcript, you oftentimes have trouble finding out which party somebody is in because our discussions are — they are very serious,” he said. “Our members all take it very seriously, and they are not particularly partisan in the room, which is great.”

That dynamic is also central to how Rust responds to accusations that the committee is partisan. Investigators frequently face criticism from the people they scrutinize, he said, but the committee’s evenly divided membership and nonpartisan staff provide an important safeguard.

“The best way to address any criticism of your work is just let your work speak for itself and do the best work possible,” Rust said.

The biggest challenge, he added, is the committee’s confidentiality. Because much of its work happens behind closed doors, outsiders can sometimes misunderstand its process.

For Rust, the mission remains the draw. He expects to remain with the committee for at least the next few years.

He said protecting the integrity of the House is “a valuable thing.”