This makes no sense. Transferring your own money to anyone without notifying the U.S. Government shouldn’t be against the law. (Yes, I know it is.)
The last time I checked, blackmail is against the law.
I’m no Hastert fan but, IMHO, he is being screwed by Washington. They should slap his hand and arrest the blackmailer.
Do we know what the misconduct was? Can we assume it was illegal? Otherwise, how was the law broken by Hastert when he was being extorted?
An unintended consequence might be that Constitutional Conservatives can be more demanding that our candidates don't hide their pasts. I'd like to know how how many supposed constitutional conservatives knew about this. I'd also like to know (as we suspected) how many of those who traitor us when they get to DC are being blackmailed.