Republican invokes Chappaquiddick against Democratic rival

Boston.com ^ | 10/11/2006 | Andrew Miga

[Panerai]

HARTFORD, Conn. --Republican Rep. Christopher Shays defended the House speaker's handling of a congressional page scandal, saying no one died like at Chappaquiddick in 1969 when Democratic Sen. Edward Kennedy was involved.

"I know the speaker didn't go over a bridge and leave a young person in the water, and then have a press conference the next day," the embattled Connecticut congressman told The Hartford Courant in remarks published Wednesday.

"Dennis Hastert didn't kill anybody," he added.

Shays' comments recalled the Chappaquiddick incident, when Kennedy's car ran off a Massachusetts bridge, killing his passenger, Mary Jo Kopechne. Kennedy did not immediately report the tragedy, and later pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of an accident.

Last week, Kennedy campaigned for Democrat Diane Farrell, who is locked in a bitter fight with Shays that could help determine whether Democrats recapture the House after 12 years of GOP control.

"This is symptomatic of Chris losing his composure in a tight race," Farrell said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press Wednesday. "Chris just seems to be lashing out in anger."

Kennedy's office had a terse response.

[Williams]

There are lots of details to the Kennedy "story" (lie). I can still remember his national tv speech on this. He claimed to have tried to save her, he brought his cousin to the scene, and with his cousin standing there Teddy claims he jumped into the water and swam away into the night, risking his life a second time. he actually tried to make himself out the hero. And supposedly the cousin just went home (or back to the party?) and left Teddy presumed dead and the girl at the bottom of the channel, and told no one of this.

And remember that Kennedy money and lawyers prevented the inquest into her death from ever being completed. They demanded to be able to cross examine every witness, and they eventually gave the girl's family money.

Teddy showed up at the police station teh next day showered, sobered up, cool as a cucumber, with the girl still at the bottom. Totally disgusting.

[Soul Seeker]

A Republican actually said this? Sure, consrvative pundits say it all the time but the Republicans never go straight to the heart and tell it like this.

I'm impressed.

Thank you Congressman Shays.

[DarthVader]

Good for you Chrissie Shays, you've learned to grow a pair.

[Unicorn]

BTTT

[Valin]

"I know the speaker didn't go over a bridge and leave a young person in the water, and then have a press conference the next day," the embattled Connecticut congressman told The Hartford Courant in remarks published Wednesday.

"Dennis Hastert didn't kill anybody," he added.


HARSH! Of course the truth often is.

Kennedy's office had a terse response

I'll just bet they did. I'm thinking it was a two word response.

[Valin]

Without Mary Jo's death Teddy might have been president.

[RobbyS]

Maybe his conscience is not seared. When he ran for president against Carter in 1980, he was clearly unmanned. But the public must be warned again and again, he is a weakling, unworthy of high office.

[GOPJ]

bump

[phoenix0468]

Kennedy's office had a terse response.

"This just makes clear the real need for change in November, beyond that I'm not going to dignify such a desperate attack with a response," said Kennedy spokeswoman Melissa Wagoner.

While Senator Kennedy was quoted as saying, "Swarder finnigan, messelfup garnerged and I contsurped that stargler."

[phoenix0468]

The wrong one survived the accident.

[Delta 21]

Some things just wont die.

[Valin]

No argument here.

[youthgonewild]

Chris Shays attacking a DEMOCRAT?

[Babu]

2 or 3 weekends ago, Kim Komando on her radio computer show let a caller ramble on about this. Kim did a monologue about her ordinary upbringing, how her parents bought a fixer-upper in a now tony neighborhood. She was going on about her career as a drywaller and 'lectrician, when she fielded the call. The guy said "yeah, I know where that was, my parents lived there, just down the street where the Kopechnes lived, after they got their money from the Kennedys." He was allowed to wonder how they could accept money without publicly demanding justice for their daughter's death at the hands of Ted Kennedy. And Kim let him go on for 3 minutes, an eternity for a caller, she even did her uh-hum and and some give and take!

Kim Komando is married to Barry Young and lives in Phoenix, Arizona. Barry is kind of a pompous a**, but he is a longtime local talk show host, on the morning drive segment of the local blowtorch that carries Rush. Barry is generally pretty conservative (except for kissing John McCain's a** so that he will keep coming on his show), so I have always presumed that Kim is probably fairly conservative too. That would explain why she let the caller go on a bit ...

[spinestein]

It was probably an SUV. They're known for murdering their occupants.

[MassachusettsGOP]

Totally out of character, I hope he had a Conservative epiphany (yeah right)