Johnson raised a criticism that first surfaced several years ago after the OCE investigated Rep. Charles Rangel and several other members of the Congressional Black Caucus for expenses from an overseas trip to the Caribbean.

After those investigations, some representatives in Congress accused the OCE of "targeting" African-Americans.

"The Office of Ethics was established for political reasons," said Johnson, who is African-American. "And the victims of it tend to be people who look like me and that's why I'm opposed to it.

"I would rather for us to continue with the same ethics rule and process that was in place before we came to this Office of Ethics. And I don't think it's working well."

All the citizen watchdog groups CNN interviewed -- including CREW, Public Citizen, and the National Legal and Policy Center -- said they do not believe the OCE has targeted any Congressional officials because of their race or any other reason. They all maintain that the OCE has simply investigated cases where concerns of ethics were raised.

Whether members of Congress decide to keep the OCE or allow it to dissolve "is a critical test," according to Lee Hamilton, a widely respected former Congressman who chaired the famous 9/11 Commission.

"It is going to tell us whether the leaders of Congress are serious or whether they're not serious about the enforcement of standards of conduct within the institution," said Hamilton, who is now the director of the Center on Congress at Indiana University.

He said it should surprise anyone that members of Congress don't want to be held accountable for their actions.

"I want to see a tough enforcement of those standards," Hamilton said. "And it bothers me not a whit that some members of Congress get uneasy about it. They should get uneasy about it if they are acting in an unethical way."