Posted on 09/28/2006 3:21:37 PM PDT by slowhand520
Sixteen-Year-Old Who Worked as Capitol Hill Page Concerned About E-mail Exchange with Congressman September 28, 2006 3:06 PM
Rhonda Schwartz and Maddy Sauer Report:
A 16-year-old male former congressional page concerned about the appropriateness of an e-mail exchange with a congressman alerted Capitol Hill staffers to the communication.
Congressman Mark Foley's office says the e-mails were entirely appropriate and that their release is part of a smear campaign by his opponent.
In the series of e-mails, obtained by ABC News, from Rep. Foley (R-FL) to the former page, Foley asks the young man how old he is, what he wants for his birthday and requests a photo of him.
THE BLOTTER RECOMMENDS Congressman Ney Pleads Guilty to Accepting Lavish Gifts NY Moneyman Arrested in Teen Sex Scandal Check out the Brian Ross Webcast on Home Page The concerned young man alerted congressional staffers to the e-mails. In one e-mail, the former page writes to a staffer, "Maybe it is just me being paranoid, but seriously. This freaked me out."
Foley's office acknowledges that Foley wrote the e-mails to the young man but says they were completely innocent and that Foley is at most guilty of being "too friendly and too engaging" with young people.
The e-mails were sent from Foley's personal AOL account, and the exchange began within weeks after the page finished his program on Capitol Hill. In one, Foley writes, "did you have fun at your conference…what do you want for your birthday coming up…what stuff do you like to do."
In another Foley writes, "how are you weathering the hurricane…are you safe…send me an email pic of you as well…"
The young man forwarded that e-mail to a congressional staffer saying it was "sick sick sick sick sick."
Foley's office says it is their policy to keep pictures of former interns and anyone who may ask for a recommendation on file so they can remember them.
The Congressional page program was started in the 1800s. In its current form, juniors from high school work on Capitol Hill after school or over the summer. The young man in question did not work or intern for Foley's office.
Elizabeth Nicolson, Foley's Chief of Staff, said they believe the e-mail exchange began when the page asked Foley for a recommendation and that the subsequent exchange was totally innocent. She said Foley's office believes the e-mails were released by the opposition as part of an "ugly smear campaign."
The next thing you know, even the president will be accused of taking advantage of interns.
:0)
"exonerate himself "
Of what? sending e-mails?
That is a very good point. This is another reason I am withholding a bit of judgment here. We do not know all the facts, nor do we know exactly what the emails said or anything about the timing as well.
"Not every one is BJC."
Oh, but don't the media wish they were..........LOL
In the not too distant past, my congressman was accused of having a sexual relationship with an intern.
She's dead and he's selling ice cream in Arizona.
OH!! That proves it! He's trying to create a smoke screen to cover up his tracks!! Did somebody say SMOKE screen?? SMOKE! FIRE!! Must be a homosexual pedephile predator! After all, who else would think of such legislation. Good work! s/ /s (lots of sarcasm)
heheh.....seriously, thanks for the links.
Well, Chris DOES have some recent experience interviewing sexual predators. :)
Amen. This is *very* creepy. I don't care what the context is, if he wrote this stuff, there's something wrong with him. A birthday present? A photo? On his personal computer? The kid didn't even work for Foley. WTF? This ain't right.
It sounds to me like this kid is a little "unsettled" about his own sexuality and so reads something extra into the messages.
On the other hand, the congressman could be a flamer. Who knows? If he is a perv, others will come forward, guaranteed. Ol' slick left a trail of victims before he ever went to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
"The jaundiced eye sees the entire world as yellow"....
I sure hope you are wrong. Foley is my congressman. The last thing we need is another Democrat congressman in Palm Beach County.
Foley is the only Repub who can get elected down there, anyway.
I don't care what you think of him or how long he's been your congressman. If he wrote these emails, then he's a f'ing weirdo. Just read them. He talks like he's 12 years old. Wake up. This isn't normal behavior for a grown man.
I'm not accusing him of being anything but STUPID. It doesn't look good for him.
BS.
And he did NOT work for Foley. READ THE ARTICLES.
:-)
Pay attention: the pages work for ALL the Congress people.
Pay attention. If you're gonna get anal about it, WE were the employers. ;)
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