October Surprise
An October surprise: a sudden, stunning event late in an election season that has the potential to greatly affect the election itself.
We’re only one day from October, but it’s close enough. The blogosphere is alight with news reports that House Republican leaders Dennis Hastert and John Boehner have been aware of Foley’s pedophilic behavior for months and did nothing about it. Boehner, who initially told the Post he had told Hastert about it, later waffled and said he couldn’t remember if he had. Please. It sure wasn’t news to the pages, who were warned about Foley by people involved with the page program. The chairman of the House page board even mounted a cursory investigation and reported that fact to Hastert’s office, although Democrats were conveniently not informed.
Blogs are outraged by the hypocrisy of it all. Says Total Information Awareness:
D.C.’s age of consent is 16, but even with that, it seems like Foley could be in some serious legal trouble in addition to the political scandal. And where is the Religious Right on this issue, when apparently Bill Clinton getting his knob slobbed by a woman clearly far beyond the age of consent was equivalent to Sodom and Gomorrah?
*crickets*
…
And as for the GOP, well…cronyism, corruption, torture, and now child pandering. Behold what your modern right-wing movement has brought you.
Americablog is pounding on the Republican leadership from every angle, and is particularly outraged at Hastert:
ABC reported this evening that GOP House Speaker Denny Hastert has asked for an investigation to make sure other pages weren’t sexually harassed or abused. But the House leadership was told almost a year ago about Mark Foleys’ hanky-panky online communications with underage pages and Hastert did nothing. Why didn’t Hastert do an investigation at the time to make sure the pages were all right? Why did Hastert leave Foley in charge of the House Caucus on Missing and Exploited Children when he knew Foley had some possible personal issues involving the exploitation of children? Why did Hastert let Foley remain in the House leadership for a good year after he knew about these accusations? Cruising underage kids isn’t a disqualifier for being in the House leadership? Why did Denny Hastert let Foley remain anywhere near underage pages at all?
Would you let your kids near someone like Foley if you had been warned a year ago? Then why did Denny Hastert? The parent of every kid who was a page in the last year should be livid at the Republicans right now.
If the Catholic Church’s pedophilia scandal is any indicator, the GOP may be in for a very hard few weeks ahead.
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