(CNN) - The federal prosecution of former U.S. Rep. Rick Renzi of Arizona will continue, a federal appeals court in San Francisco ruled Thursday. The three-judge panel said the lawmaker's actions were not protected by the Constitution's "speech and debate" clause.

"Despite Renzi's best efforts to convince us otherwise, we agree with the district court that the alleged choices and actions for which he is being prosecuted lie beyond those limits" of protected activity, the court said in a unanimous 45-page ruling.