The bill seemed like a no-brainer: asking Broward voters if they would like an anti-corruption unit to investigate public officials behaving badly.

But now, some say, the proposal might be endangered by politics itself.

The Broward delegation will try again Wednesday to smooth out lumps in a bill that could create a Broward Inspector General's office. Last week's meeting on the topic turned testy, with name-calling, audible groans and doubts over whether the office is necessary. The county's lawmakers agree someone needs to keep a closer watch on unscrupulous practices by officials. Broward's reputation became tarnished last year following indictments of School Board member Beverly Gallagher, County Commissioner Josephus Eggelletion and former Miramar Commissioner Fitzroy Salesman on corruption charges.

Eggelletion pleaded guilty to money laundering in December and faces up to five years in prison. Gallagher and Salesman's cases are still in the court.

Broward's ethics commission requested the state delegation craft a bill for an inspector general -- with Rep. Ellyn Bogdanoff, a Republican who heads the Legislature's finance and tax council, taking the lead.

That, some say, may be why the popular measure has gone awry. She is the lone Republican in the delegation -- and running for a Senate seat in a district that has a growing number of residents leaning left.

``I have to say that if there were two Democrats sponsoring this bill, I don't think it would be so difficult,'' said Rep. Ari Abraham Porth, D-Coral Springs, who leads the delegation and filed the bill. ``And that, I really believe, is unfortunate.''

Bogdanoff, who is vying to succeed Sen. Jeff Atwater, has prominently marketed her advocacy of the bill on her website. A February blog post there declared she was confident the bill would pass after the delegation overwhelmingly supported the idea.

At the most recent delegation meeting, Bogdanoff expected to finish crafting the bill. But Rep. Jim Waldman, a Democrat who represents Coconut Creek, accused of her of trying to push her ``political ambitions'' on the back of an ethics reform proposal.

He declared the bill poorly put together and chided it as ``Republican.'' Bogdanoff accused him of being ``high-maintainence'' and ``adversarial.''

Waldman's use of the ``R-word'' elicited groans from the rest of the delegation. Rep. Franklin Sands of Weston -- the House Democratic leader -- called Waldman out of order. But Waldman's tirade was persuasive enough to delay a vote that would have sent the bill to a committee hearing.

``I'm not sure we can get it passed,'' Bogdanoff said after the meeting.

The Broward County Commission is considering a similar measure, but Bogdanoff and her supporters say that a state bill would go further, including the school board and local governments.

Still, more delegates are moving toward the side of Democratic Sen. Chris Smith. He said he would vote against a bill. Instead, he wants the Legislature to put more money into the Broward State Attorney's Office for investigating public corruption.

Robert Samuels can be reached at rsamuels@miamiherald.com