Oh, dear... Mr. Foley

[Jonathan Randall]

http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2006/09/exclusive_the_s.html

Representative Mark Foley, who resigned over charges of sending sexually explicit messages and propositions to minors and improper contact via e-mail, internet and IM, may be prosecuted under legislation he himself wrote.

 

[Don Roley]

Why don't congressmen use bookmarks?

Because they like their pages bent over. :uhyeah:

If this "teenager" was 18....ok. If he was 16 or so, time to bring in the police. I just don't know how to go about it without somehow getting the victim indentified by the community he probably wants to keep it hidden from.

 

[MA-Caver]

Well hypocracy isn't the way to do things if you want to get things done...

 

[Jonathan Randall]

Why don't congressmen use bookmarks?

Because they like their pages bent over. :uhyeah:

If this "teenager" was 18....ok. If he was 16 or so, time to bring in the police. I just don't know how to go about it without somehow getting the victim indentified by the community he probably wants to keep it hidden from.

Apparently he was 16 and not the only one.

While I have NO sympathy for his behavior, I do feel sorrow for the fact that his self-destructive, and probably criminal, behavior has destroyed a career in public service that took decades to attain.

Tragedy. Self-caused, true, but still a tragedy. The thing that really gets me is that so many folks will now seek partisan political advantage over this. Sorry folks, but deviance crosses all political, economic and social lines.

 

[michaeledward]

"It's vile," said Rep. Mark Foley, R-West Palm Beach. "It's more sad than anything else, to see someone with such potential throw it all down the drain because of a sexual addiction."

This statement was made in 1998, after the release of the Star Report.

What bothers me most in this unravelling report, is that the leadership of our Congress was aware of this information for months. They did not inform members of the Democratic Leadership. They took, apparently, no effort to remedy the situation with Congressman Foley.

There used to be an effective 'Ethics Committee' in the House. Congressman Delay had neutered that committee. I am a bit saddened that it had not been restored to effective graces after that Congressman's departure.

 

[michaeledward]

In my previous post, I indicated the Republican Leadership was aware of Representative Foley's "over-friendly" emails for "months".

This weekend, we learned that since 2001, Congressional Pages were being told to be wary of Congressman Foley. It seems that some knew more, earlier, rather than later.

http://www.abcnews.go.com/WNT/story?id=2514770&page=1

 

[Don Roley]

To be exact, the type of thing people were being warned about was along this line.

"It was a slight cautionary statement, you know, 'Don't get too wrapped up in him being too nice to you and all that kind of stuff.' You know, 'He's a nice guy, but he's a little bid odd,' and that sort of thing," Loraditch said.

Until quite recently, the most people seemed to know was that he was "a little bit odd" as the article says. The worst stuff has only come out since it hit the news.

I fear for the page that got the e-mails. They are really not much more than a guy kind of flirting. The parents asked that the case not be pursued for fear of their son's reputation and it looks like he did nothing to encourage the e-mails. But in the frenzy of an election in just a few weeks, I do not know what people will do to gain an advantage. I know guys that had to deal with being labled a homosexual in high school. One of them commited suicide.

I have no sympathy for Foley. I just am sick at the way people are using this for political gain. I am sure they will try to pull up examples of dirty tricks by the other side. But I keep seeing this as a danger to the 16 year old who did nothing.

 

[Jonathan Randall]

To be exact, the type of thing people were being warned about was along this line.



Until quite recently, the most people seemed to know was that he was "a little bit odd" as the article says. The worst stuff has only come out since it hit the news.

I fear for the page that got the e-mails. They are really not much more than a guy kind of flirting. The parents asked that the case not be pursued for fear of their son's reputation and it looks like he did nothing to encourage the e-mails. But in the frenzy of an election in just a few weeks, I do not know what people will do to gain an advantage. I know guys that had to deal with being labled a homosexual in high school. One of them commited suicide.

I have no sympathy for Foley. I just am sick at the way people are using this for political gain. I am sure they will try to pull up examples of dirty tricks by the other side. But I keep seeing this as a danger to the 16 year old who did nothing.

Yes, that's the thing. Folks are taking an issue of human fallibility (and probable criminality), the type that crosses all party lines, and trying to take partisan advantage from it.

The 16 year old is definitely the victim here. Apparently only the "less" explicit e-mails were released to the press and there is more than simply what we've seen.

 

[michaeledward]

From July 27, 2006

You know, having someone harm your child is one of the worst nightmares a parent could face.

Protecting our children is our solemn responsibility. It's what we must do. When a child's life or innocence is taken it is a terrible loss -- it's an act of unforgivable cruelty. Our society has a duty to protect our children from exploitation and danger.

By enacting this law we're sending a clear message across the country: those who prey on our children will be caught, prosecuted and punished to the fullest extent of the law.

The bill I sign today will make it harder for sex predators to reach our children on the Internet. Some sex predators use this technology to make contact with potential victims.

Representative Foley is on the right side of this photo, wearing the light blue tie.

When this photo was taken, the President was signing into law "The Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006". At this time, the Republican Congressional leadership was aware of Representative Foley's communications with the page - or pages.

 

[michaeledward]

Mr. Foley has checked himself into alcohol rehab. Apparently, he is hoping to confuse the American public on the two topics of pedophilia and alcoholism.

In all of my years of drinking, I don't recall ever talking with young boys about sex. Nor did I ask young boys to send me pictures, nor to measure their penis, nor discuss whether or not they masturbated over the weekend.

I did many things when I was drinking. Many of which I am ashamed of today. But I am fairly certain that alcohol never caused me to take those actions.

It is something else, Mr. Foley. It is something else.

 

[Kacey]

Another concern about this arose this morning; while sitting in the waiting room at the mechanic's, the TV was showing CNN, which was interviewing a former page about the amount of oversight the pages are given. The young man stated that there is plenty of oversight in the dormitories and off-time, but not as much during the actual 'working' hours, because there has not been a need before, given the structure of the building and congressional meetings - he was concerned that, in the backlash, the entire page program might be scrapped.

 

[crushing]

A more accurate term may be ephebophilia or maybe pederasty, but that is beside the point. I think you are right that he is trying to confuse others about his inexusable behavior. And, unlike other previous incidents in Washington, it doesn't look like he is going to get away with it.

 

[Makalakumu]

To be exact, the type of thing people were being warned about was along this line.



Until quite recently, the most people seemed to know was that he was "a little bit odd" as the article says. The worst stuff has only come out since it hit the news.

I fear for the page that got the e-mails. They are really not much more than a guy kind of flirting. The parents asked that the case not be pursued for fear of their son's reputation and it looks like he did nothing to encourage the e-mails. But in the frenzy of an election in just a few weeks, I do not know what people will do to gain an advantage. I know guys that had to deal with being labled a homosexual in high school. One of them commited suicide.

I have no sympathy for Foley. I just am sick at the way people are using this for political gain. I am sure they will try to pull up examples of dirty tricks by the other side. But I keep seeing this as a danger to the 16 year old who did nothing.

As hard as it is going to be for the real victim in this situation, this case is, unfortunately, political. If it turns out that the Republican leadership covered this up in order to retain a coveted seat and pass legislation, THAT is also inexcusable.

And those involved NEED to be held accountable. Imagine brushing something like this under the rug for political gain and claiming one is part of the moral majority?

 

[Don Roley]

If it turns out that the Republican leadership covered this up in order to retain a coveted seat and pass legislation, THAT is also inexcusable.

It would appear that it was common knowledge that he was 'a bit odd' but nice. The Republicans seem to be aware that he wrote a letter to one of the pages after Katrina inquiring after his health and asking for a picture. All the stories you hear about him asking someone in a chat room if he made them hot came out after this one page was revealed.

It is not surprising that he would be exposed by the least damning case. Imagine if you were the other page that said he made you a little hot? The kid might be leaning toward that sort of sexual persuasion himself but would not come forward about it. But the kid that did nothing and has nothing to really hide was quite willing to talk to his parents, who talked to the republicans who talked to Foley and got him to stop in that case.

But now that the lid is off, I would not be surprised if there was more cases that no one knew of came forward. You look at a lot of cases like this and you find a lot of people who keep silent until one person goes public. Until then, they are too ashamed to tell anyone.

And I do fear for the kids. It is hell to be known as a homosexual at that age. We know the page was displaced by Katrina, the senator he worked for... it probably won't take much for some of his friends to piece together the puzzle. I wish the media would take a bit more caution in revealing this sort of information. But it is such a juicy story and I doubt they give a damn if this kid takes a jump off of a building as a result. Heck, it would deepen the scandal and sell more papers if he did. :angry:

 

[Makalakumu]

It would appear that it was common knowledge that he was 'a bit odd' but nice. The Republicans seem to be aware that he wrote a letter to one of the pages after Katrina inquiring after his health and asking for a picture. All the stories you hear about him asking someone in a chat room if he made them hot came out after this one page was revealed.

It is not surprising that he would be exposed by the least damning case. Imagine if you were the other page that said he made you a little hot? The kid might be leaning toward that sort of sexual persuasion himself but would not come forward about it. But the kid that did nothing and has nothing to really hide was quite willing to talk to his parents, who talked to the republicans who talked to Foley and got him to stop in that case.

But now that the lid is off, I would not be surprised if there was more cases that no one knew of came forward. You look at a lot of cases like this and you find a lot of people who keep silent until one person goes public. Until then, they are too ashamed to tell anyone.

And I do fear for the kids. It is hell to be known as a homosexual at that age. We know the page was displaced by Katrina, the senator he worked for... it probably won't take much for some of his friends to piece together the puzzle. I wish the media would take a bit more caution in revealing this sort of information. But it is such a juicy story and I doubt they give a damn if this kid takes a jump off of a building as a result. Heck, it would deepen the scandal and sell more papers if he did. :angry:

I don't want to jump to any conclusions. We'll just have to see who knew what...and whether anyone believes various versions of what happened.

I find the timing of this convenient for the democrats. It wouldn't surprise me if the "leak" of this information was political.

 

[michaeledward]

All the reports I have seen, seem to indicate that the Democratic members of the House were completely in the dark about Mr. Foley's persuasion.

I understand that Mr. Foley offered to resign immediately if the ABC reporter would hold back on releasing the transcripts. A deal was placed on the table by Mr. Foley.

The transcripts for the Instant Message conversations are available online. It is easy enough to find them.

 

[Don Roley]

I find the timing of this convenient for the democrats. It wouldn't surprise me if the "leak" of this information was political.

There has been a request for the justice department to look into the more serious case that happened three years ago. That is the one that only recently was leaked and the Republicans had no knowledge of. The one where Foley asks someone if he makes him hot.

If it is not a case of a reporter managing to find something in old records, it would mean that someone had knowledge of what he was doing and did nothing to stop him for three years in order to drop it just before he was facing an election.

 

[michaeledward]

This report from Howard Kurtz points to some interesting developments from the last five days.

On Friday afternoon, a strategist for Rep. Mark Foley tried to cut a deal with ABC's Brian Ross.

The correspondent, who had dozens of instant messages that Foley sent to teenage House pages, had asked to interview the Florida Republican. Foley's former chief of staff said the congressman was quitting and that Ross could have that information exclusively if he agreed not to publish the raw, sexually explicit messages.

"I said we're not making any deals," Ross recalls. He says the Internet made the story possible, because on Thursday he posted a story on his ABC Web page, the Blotter, after obtaining one milder e-mail that Foley had sent a 16-year-old page, asking for a picture. Within two hours, former pages had e-mailed Ross and provided the salacious messages. The only question then, says Ross, was "whether this could be authenticated."

The 'strategist' for Mark Foley that asked ABC to bury the story was former Foley Chief of Staff - and current Chief of Staff for the NRCC leader Reynolds - Kirk Fordham. So a person who was, for ten years, in the position to know Mr. Foley's predilections and is now serving for the person in charge of getting Republicans re-elected to Congress, tried to bury or kill the story.

Mr. Ross, the reporter from ABC, indicates from this story, that subsequent information was not 'leaked' at all from anyone. The additional information arrived in Ross's inbox from "former pages".

Lastly, as you watch Speaker Hastert's explainations over the past five days, they have evolved, and morphed in a variety of ways. http://mediamatters.org/items/200610020010

There is no way that this ends well for the current congressional leadership. The spin machines are desperately trying to get someone's head on the chopping block to remove the story from the front pages. The spin machines have already tried to blame the victims in this case.

This incident seems to be a clear representation of Mr. Orwell's fiction; 'That the purpose of Power, is Power'.

 

[Makalakumu]

Thanks, Michael, for the clarification. It seems as if the worst expectations in this case may turn out to be true. I wonder if a real investigation is going to ensue...

 

[mrhnau]

A couple of things of interest in this....

first: what he did. Words. He text messages and sent some emails. While they are bad and what I consider vile, they are words. Shall we consider others who have done more than words? Do you perchance recall the Lewinski mess and purjury? How many of you recall Studds? Studds had sex with a 17 year old page, which is considered statutory rape! More than words (*ahem ahem* [sarcasm] proponents of the first admendment not piping up here? [/sarcasm] ). Left defended Clinton and Studds got a censure rather than jail time like most rapists. Studds even admitted what happened! He even turned his back when the censure was pronounced.

second: response. Foley admitted what he did. He resigned. He is in treatment for alcoholism. What did Clinton do? did he resign? What did Studds do? did he resign? Turned his back on congress.

Republicans are not perfect. Democrats are not either. However, I do see a difference in how they deal with problems. Everyone is an individual and should be responsible for the choices they make and the consequences that may/should follow.

I'm curious to see how much the Republicans knew... the coming months should be interesting.

One thing I was a bit upset about though... I was watching some of the news shows. They would rather focus on this mess than kids being killed in Pen. during the day... I guess some shows are more about politics, but come on...

Now for some recent comments

There is no way that this ends well for the current congressional leadership. The spin machines are desperately trying to get someone's head on the chopping block to remove the story from the front pages. The spin machines have already tried to blame the victims in this case.

Really? not from what I've heard. Most of the talking heads I've heard are already drooling about the political consequences. I've not heard much about the victim. Interesting term though. Victim. Is there a victim? That would assume a crime. I honestly am not familiar with email/texting laws. I assume it is illegal then? under what law? If so, think Foley will be prosecuted?

I find the timing of this convenient for the democrats. It wouldn't surprise me if the "leak" of this information was political.

Absolutely. Wonder why its six weeks before the vote? Would the world have ended if it came out a year earlier or seven weeks later? of course its political. I'm wondering what other "bombshells" will be popping out on each side... just a few weeks left!

Yes, that's the thing. Folks are taking an issue of human fallibility (and probable criminality), the type that crosses all party lines, and trying to take partisan advantage from it.

Absolutely. Then again, this happened with Clinton/Studds. However, they did not deal with the critique very well.