Posted on 10/01/2006 12:51:29 AM PDT by beyond the sea
(snips) --
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- House Republican leaders mounted an effort to explain their own conduct after the resignation of Rep. Mark Foley and suggested there should be a criminal investigation of Foley's contacts with congressional pages.
A strongly worded statement assailing Foley from the chamber's top three Republicans came as they tried to answer key questions: What did they know and what did they do about it?
Calling the contacts "an obscene breach of trust," the congressmen said in their statement that "[Foley's] immediate resignation must now be followed by the full weight of the criminal justice system."
"The improper communications between Congressman Mark Foley and former House congressional pages is unacceptable and abhorrent," read the statement issued by Majority Leader John Boehner of Ohio, House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert of Illinois and Majority Whip Roy Blunt of Missouri.
ABC News on Friday evening reported details of three exchanges of instant messages sent in 2003 between teenage male pages and someone using the screen name Maf54, which ABC identified as Foley. The congressman's initials are MAF, and he was born in 1954.
In one of those exchanges, Maf54 advises the teen to "strip down." In another, when the teen says he's wearing a T-shirt and shorts, Maf54 replies, "Love to slip them off of you." And in a third, Maf54 asks, "Do I make you a little horny?" (More details) Democrats suggest cover up
The scandal comes just weeks before the November 7 midterm elections, and Republicans were hurriedly trying to find someone to replace Foley. Foley, 53 and single, had been favored to win re-election in the Republican-leaning district running against Democrat Tim Mahoney.
Democrats sought to take advantage of the bad press.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
Good morning, veronica.
You're right too --- democrats ALWAYS over play their hand.
And for those who say we shouldn't criticize the Dems for this, I ask 'WHY NOT'!
Why should Republicans be the only ones to suffer the consequences of such actions while Democrats skate virtually EVERY TIME!
Well, between this and Bill Frist turning me into a criminal by spending $5 on an online poker tournament, I'm totally demoralized for this year's elections.
You can't tell me the GOP didn't know this guy was a sicko after working with him for 12 years? Secrets like that don't last in Washington.
Thank you for eloquently saying what I have been ranting :)
I do not think the media over-hype of this will help that much.
Most election campaigns for congress do not, in the end, run on national issues as much as they run on how people in the congressional district view the candidates for that district.
Most people who really like a candidate do not decide to change their vote because someone in that candidiate's party did something unethical in Washington D.C.
I am not going out and vote against my Republican congressional candidate because of anything the GOP leadership in D.C. did. It's got nothing to do with him. But, the LameStreamMedia will try to convince you otherwise.
The e-mails were "overly friendly". It is my understanding that that is what Hastert knew about. It is the IM's that are the ones that are the gutter talk of private parts and masturbation. I believe those messages only came out recently.
Please correct me if I am wrong, but I believe Hastert only saw the original e-mails which were only questionable...not horrific.
Peoples Republic of Massachussets. Go fig.
The Democrat's new motto should read "It's OK When we do it!"
>:(
God....... I hope so!
Speaking of cards....... from 2003/Thomas Lifson/The American Thinker:
One final note on George W. Bush’s management style and his Harvard Business School background does not derive from the classroom, per se. One feature of life there is that a subculture of poker players exists. Poker is a natural fit with the inclinations, talents, and skills of many future entrepreneurs. A close reading of the odds, combined with the ability to out-psych the opposition, leads to capital accumulation in many fields, aside from the poker table.
By reputation, the President was a very avid and skillful poker player when he was an MBA student. One of the secrets of a successful poker player is to encourage your opponent to bet a lot of chips on a losing hand. This is a pattern of behavior one sees repeatedly in George W. Bush’s political career. He is not one to loudly proclaim his strengths at the beginning of a campaign. Instead, he bides his time, does not respond forcefully, a least at first, to critiques from his enemies, no matter how loud and annoying they get. If anything, this apparent passivity only goads them into making their case more emphatically.
****
Hmmm.
I'm understanding now. I had thought (incorrectly) that emails and IM's were the same.
(stupid me)
;-)
I got you and exposed you to who you really are.
Excuse me (I just heard Steve Martin in my head). ;-)
I was out there working........ beautiful day!!!
But this comment of yours earlier, I could not get out of my obsessive mind, and it was getting on my nerves.
You know you are one of my favorite FReepers, so please take this the right way.
If you are suggesting that I am one of those hand-wringers, call it what you wish.
But after watching MTP and ALL the other media coverage of this Foley thing for the past 36 hours there is one thing that you perhaps WILL NEVER wish to admit.
Here is what you will not admit. It is that the American public/voters who peripherally hear about this sick story are not smart enough to study it and learn of the Congressional Republican leaders' compliance or non-compliance.
You, Dane, and I know that (perhaps) Denny Hastert did not see the real ugly stuff early on. Right? I am willing to believe that he did not. I also know from the arguments that have been made, that Hastert could not come out early on against Foley too vehemently or he may have been portrayed as a homophobe......... or whatever.
(I am hurrying through this because I need to work, so forgive whatever.)
Anyhow here is the main point I'm trying to make ....... and you seem to want to pass it off as "hand-wringing".
The American public who hear about this story (and after five weeks of media crap up to the election it will be a hell of a lot of them)...... MOST of them will not understand the distinction that Hastert ONLY read the "more than friendly" emails!
They will believe that the Republican leaders saw all of the nastiness, did nothing about it........ and draw their opinions.
The people will not make that important distinction that most likely is true. (What else is new?)
****
Anyhow, don't dismiss genuine and correct concern as foolish hand-wringing. I see that a lot around here.
Oops.
;-)
You could have stopped right there. :)
I know you're concerned, but I'm sure you know that the democrats are the party of perverts and homosexuals and J.Q.Public knows that.
Foley is out of Congress. Barney Frank is not and while the two are not identical, Foley is GONE. Investigations are underway and the GOP leadership called for the investigation FIRST.
I would like to know why you seem to admire Nathan Bedford Forrest so much. I am serious. Is there a reason that you chose him, of all historical American figures, to use as your call-sign and post his picture? Seems a little odd choice for "most admired man". Please enlighten me.
If there is ANY voter out there who says that they can purify our congress by voting out Republicans is delusional. RATS are far worse!!!
Foley is a disgrace and I don't care what happens to him. This is par for the course for homos and homos are a constituency group of RATS. They normally defend this type of behavior. Heck, they even admire it.
Who else knew? What did they know? When did they know it? Why did this get timed with the election? Are the Dims hoping no one knows about some of their predators or at least can't expose them before the election? Who is watching the chicken coop on the hill?
Do you think that fact (that you properly mention) will resonate with all the MORONS out there who will get most of their news and perspective on this story from Leno, Letterman. Stewart, etc.? Will they see it that the Republicans did the right thing? I doubt it.
I'm going to make my own file on this Foley story of all late night jokes. You would be surprised at how many voters get their "impressions" of stories like this and make their voting decisions from those shows.
This is not good.
This one on George Allen and the racial crap:
Thursday Night September 28/Leno
People are still talking about George Allen. Did you know his dad was a football coach? He coached the Rams and the Redskins. Right now he’s coaching the white team on "Survivor”.
Drip, drip, drip ................. that crap works on the weak-minded over time!
Yes, yes, they're dragging this out for all it's worth, but this topic is a turn off for most people. I am already sick to death of it.
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