That is frightening. A true predator circling around his prey. I would be ticked if I were the parents of these pages.

Alright already. Heard enough. when you have some facts and the man is in jail it will be another story to write about. Until then its is DEAD.

Strange bmw ideas... hope that they better upgrades their cars :(

Has anyone ask Speaker Hastert when he first became aware of Follie's night time visits to the Page Dorm?

i m not for petafier, but i would like to know how law can charge a under 17 as a adult for a craim but when is sexual she he, are chidren,not adult.

Dene: This may be difficult for a "petafier" to understand but before a minor is charged as an adult they must be cerified as an adult by the court system. I don't know if it would work this way, but before you decide to have sex with a minor, maybe you could have a judge certify them as an adult for you. I think that would go over quite well, ehh?

Bush's crazy belief that because he says it makes it so is clearly contagious. David, above, thinks he can declare Foley/Hastert/Reynolds/Boehner/Simkus-gate dead, when it's just begun. I can't wait to see how many of the Party of Nixon are removed from office by this!

Not sure what the individual "dene" is saying, since that is not clearly English, but Foley did not engage in pedophilia, number one, it was ephebophilia. There is a difference, psychologically and according to the DSM-IV, which is used by psych professionals to assist in the diagnoses of psychoses. Number two, the age of consent in DC is 16 years old, not 17, and not 18. That, therefore, suggests that this whole scandal has little to do with sex and more to do with harassment and predation.

I think they should do away with the pages altogether. Let the congressmen/women do their own running around (for work issues) not cruising for sex. They make waaay too much for doing waaay too little anyway! And no, it's not enough already. It will NEVER be enough - that why this country is a mess - because of attitudes like yours!

Steve - good post. And you're right - the issue is harassment, not sex.

Regardless of whether it was strictly illegal, it was certainly predatory behavior by a House member that proclaimed to be protecting children, as well as a member of a party that continuously stands on a pedestal of supposed moral superiority.

This whole thing - including the obvious conspiratorial coverups - shows them for the "party-first-constituent-second" hypocrits that they are. Whether or not anyone goes to jail for this, the damage is done, and the voters will not be fooled by self-serving legal minutiae. In fact - it will alienate them further.

When in a hole, the first thing to do is stop digging...

Much is being said of the age-0f-consent in the DC. Is the age-of-consent in DC only for residents of the district or for visitors as well? Foley is a resident of Florida. The boys he was involved with were residents of other states. Some state age-of-consent laws apply not only to acts committed within its boundaries but also acts committed by its residents when outside the state.

What of the Mann Act? (In 1910, Congress passed the Mann Act which makes it a federal crime to transport individuals under the age of 18 across state lines to engage in any sexual activity.) Did Foley, through his congressional position, have any input into the selection of pages? If so, could he not be charged with a violation. The original intent of the law was to stop prostitutes from being moved from one locale to another. It now also applies to an adult taking a *consensual* minor to another state. Penalties can include being fined for $5,000, or imprisoned for 5 years, or both. The penalty could be doubled if a minor is involved.

I am still trying to figure out how Bill Clinton can be made to be responsible for Foley-gate. So far, Bushies have put 9/11 and North Korea in his lap, ignoring that Condi DID attend that urgent meeting with the CIA (even though she "forgot"--key to success in the Bush Whitehouse). Furthermore, Donnie (Worst Sec of Defense in History) Rumsfield was on the BOARD of the company that sold the reactors to N. Korea. When the world is in peril, let's keep in mind that ALL ROADS LEAD BACK TO RUMSFELD, not Clinton.

"Keep Pervy Republican Mitts off Our Kids--Vote Democrat"

ANSWER TO DENE: WHEN YOU COMMIT A CRIME YOU VIOLATE OTHERS RIGHTS, THEREFORE YOU ARE ACTING MORE LIKE (SHAMEFULLY) ADULTS DO, ESP WHEN IT IS MURDER AND MAIMING. WHEN YOU ARE CHILD VICTIM, YOU SHOULD RECEIVE YOUR FULL RIGHTS AS A MINOR TO PROTECT YOU. SIMPLE ENOUGH. FOLEY IS A PREDATOR AND A PEDOPHILE, FAR DIFFERENT FROM HOMOSEXUAL, AND WITHOUT A DOUBT HE SHOULD HAVE BEEN STOPPED LONG AGO, BUT THEN THEY ALL SHOULD HAVE, SPEAK OUT FOLKS AND PERHAPS IT WILL STOP. WE CAN GET CELL PHONES THAT REPORT THEIR OWN THEFT, SURELY WE CAN TEACH OUR CHILDREN TO REPORT PREDATORY BEHAVIOR BEFORE THEY ARE ROBBED OF THEIR YOUTH. ACT NOW. TURN IN A CREEP TODAY!

The real story is the cover up by closeted GOP members. This story has a long way to go. Most gays in DC know the real story.

Ephebophilia or pedophilia he is still a threat to kids. 16 the age of consent, really?? This is just crazy, 16 is a rough time for most kids emotionally and physically and that sicko preyed on that.

Foley represent the real Gop's family values: rotten hypocrites-bleached tombs

Okay, don't care what age consent is, bottom line: this party of morals and individuality ignored what was happening... in this country, the US of A, if you are under 18, you aren't an adult... lets just wait and see how this plays out after Nov 7. Once thing is for sure, the republicans got screwed by Foley; and yeah, If I were a Dem, I'd be playing hardball and milkin' this for all it's worth!

after a hard day of making the government smaller and raising your own salary as self congratulation, what hard working congressman wouldn't want to have a sexual fling with a minor of your preferred sex that you ostensibly have responsibility for?

Foley is a sick sick old man. For some Republicans to make light of Foley's predatory ways (just because the pages could be 16 or 17 or 18)is truly disgusting. More disgusting because the Republicans present such "squeaky" clean image about themselves, always self-righteous. Foley has behaved horribly and the Republicans should just admit it.

"David" must work on the Republican side of the Page House! Must be! Saying it's 'dead'. I wonder if these kids parents would consider the issue 'dead' if their kids were being stocked. Also - with everything coming out it looks like Pedophile Foley waits until the kids are 18 or better. You read through this horror and it's very obvious he attempts to avoid the 'underaged'. Think of what he would do if he wasn't in the public eye!

I love how Republicans can't take the heat on this G.O.P. (Gay On Pages) Foley scandal. The story only broke two weekends ago, and already some of them are crying "enough already". Bill Clinton has been out of office for 6 years, and there are Right-wing vultures out there, like Ann Coulter, who still use the Lewinsky-Clinton scandal as a cash cow.

These self=righteous hypos aren't really Christians. they use this great religion to grab power and commit crimes

I think it is wrong to shut down the page program just because some of our so-called representatives can't keep their hands off a computer and their sexual deviations and thoughts and conduct to themselves. There is no reason to blame the pages for Foley's or any other Congressperson/Senator's actions.

David it seems suffers from short attention span syndrome... something seen far too often in this country and is a result of having/wanting/getting what they want immediately rather than working for it. A sad comment on our society today. On another note, Foley is in trouble. Whether or not he is Republican or Democrat makes no difference. If he wasn't "messing around" with stuff he shouldn't have been messing around with, there would be NO news re: this issue.

Well boys and girls we have learned today that Republicans can not be trusted with our children, by a show of hands how many of you think that they can be trusted running our goverment?

Unbelievable. This is the party of "moral values", right?

This scandal has "The Revenge of William Jefferson Clinton" written all over it. Did he grease a republican palm to achieve this?

FEDERAL law prohibits soliciting sex from minors (18 & under), so the DC age of consent is immaterial.

Steve is overlooking something: the age of consent in the states the former pages lived when they were sent those blatantly sexual emails/IMs.

And as for his semantic hairsplitting: ephebophilia.com states "82% of all sexual abuse are cases of Ephebophilia." A rose by any other name, Steve...

When you vote in November don't forget the rallying cry: "Remember Abramoff, DeLay, Foley, Hastert and Bush"

Bob

Nay! The Party of Nixon must go!

I'm tracking Foleygate with great schadenfreude and unwarranted hope, given our recent history of vote fraud in national elections.

Unless I've missed something, it seems apparent is that Representative Foley had the ability to secure a lot of personal information about individual pages, such as when they turned 18, and their personal email/IM addresses. And this is before the government legalized such invasions of privacy.

Well, the ranks of GOP Congressmen are sure all on the same page.

The National Rontunda is in dire need of a major fumigation come this November.

All this talk about what's-his-name chasing after boys, and nobody's mentioned that today is the one month anniversary of the commemorations for the fifth anniversary of 9/11. I think people want to hear about that, not all this trashy reheated gossip. 9/11! Terror! Osama! Vote Republican!

David - Dead? I think not. It's alive and growing by the day. America loves sex scandals. It's all they listen to. They will never get enough of this. The media did two years on Monica. You actually think this is dead. You don't know your country, David.

Just wait until we start hearing about the Marianas islands and the trips certain congressmen have taken there . They prevented legislation to protect that place from having sweatshop conditions and underage prostitution. Its likely to make foleygate look like nothing in comparison.

These are the same republicans who claim to keep us safe from terrorists. They can't even keep 16 year old children safe feom Foley.

La cauge a Foley Gate

-
Brian Ross & The Investigative Team deserve Pulitzer Prizes for finally snapping America out of its neo-con coma!
-

Wanting to date young boys is one thing but not driving an American made car is just wrong!!

i/Alright already. Heard enough. when you have some facts and the man is in jail it will be another story to write about. Until then its is DEAD./i

How pathetic. Wishing it away won't help. Perhaps a little accountability from the "Culture of Corruption" is what is needed. Tell me, if it was your child that received this abuse would you want it covered up "until the man is in jail?"

Funny how the "war on terror"
is used to justify spying on ordinary United States citizens but Congress ignored the huge security risk posed by Foley for years. Even if he never broke the law his actions were so grotesque as to offer endless opportunities for blackmail by the enemies of the United States and the
"tough on national security" Republicans did not even care.

I am truly amazed at the Republicans who are buying this "blame Clinton" argument--for anything. The Conservative Marionettes (Limbaugh et al) are trying to say this was deliberately timed and then leaked by Demos. What you don't hear them saying is that no one in the Grand Ol' Party was putting these kids interests ahead of their thirst for POWER. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Whoever "leaked" this story has been trying to get their story out for over a year (see article in Harper's). Somebody finally decided to put the kids first, and close the Repulican Candy Store.

"I think people want to hear about that, not all this trashy reheated gossip. 9/11! Terror! Osama! Vote Republican!"

Oh come on, TMM.

Yes, let's talk about 9/11, terror and Osama. Are we safer now than we were on 9/11/01? No. The fact is we're in even more danger. Terror? The war in Iraq has only increased the liklihood of another attack and greatly increased the number of the people who hate the US. We're no better off on this one either. And Osama? I think that's a fine question. Where exactly IS Osama?? Oh, that's right, he's running around a free man and thumbing his nose at us in videos. The Republicans have done FINE job so far.

I think this issue is far from DEAD, as quoted by David. That's exactly what the Republican Administration wants, is for this to be pushed out of the news quickly. All weekend long all Republicans were saying how it's over now, and that Foley is gone so lets move on. If this had been a Democrat in the same position, he'd be under tremendous scrutiny. I think he needs to be placed in jail!

Some of the text messaging occured in Florida and Louisana
where the age of consent is not 16.

Response to Dave: Not sure what you are saying. It DOES matter whether it is ephebophila or pedophilia. They are differe things, with different statuses. It's the same as with murder v. manslaughter. You are also confusing issues regarding mail messages and IMs and age of consent. While ugly and exceedingly inappropriate, there is no crime in chatting with someone under age, assuming that was the case. That's one issue. Number two, if there was any contact between Foley and 16 year olds in DC, it was not illegal...though really unethical simply because the pages are effectively subordinates. Either way, these both prove my point. It is not an issue of sex, it's an issue of harassment. Unfortunately, all Americans want to see is this framed that way. What REALLY disgusts me about this is that in the grand scheme of incompetence, negligence, and outright willful neglect of their constitutional duties to check the executive branch, this is really small potatoes. Illegal wiretapping, lying about a war, torture, the death of habeas corpus, and complete and utter fiscal failure SHOULD have gotten Americans angry and made them want to at least change parties.

Exactly Cassandra & M. Straus! Foley has been GROOMING his "conquests" knowing that they would be turining 18 soon. He thought he was being so clever, as though waiting for them to become "adults" would make it somehow less sick and illegal.

Man was he wrong.

FEDERAL law prohibits soliciting sex from minors (18 & under), so the DC age of consent is immaterial.

Look, I use to live in DC on Capitol Hill. Congressmen routinely troll for more than just young men up there. Any given evening one can hang out near Eastern Market and watch these guys come through on the prowl looking for whatever floats their boat. I used to play tennis at Hines Elementary in the summer. I'd see Congressmen out there on the Ave. looking real wrong. The fact that Foley was behaving this way should not surprise anyone, because it is so widespread -- on the Hill, on Wall Street, on any major thoroughfare in the U.S.!! This whole thing is a typical American Public reaction to an age old American problem. As long as this kind of problem is not in the open, it passes by with barely so much as a second thought. Enough about this guy!!! Can we get back to the real crisis at hand...how to deal with 2,700+ and rising dead souls.

-Out.

"Brian Ross & The Investigative Team deserve Pulitzer Prizes for finally snapping America out of its neo-con coma!"

Though you have never posted one of my comments on these Foley blogs, I agree with the above remark. DO NOT STOP investigating and reporting on this story. I don't think it's as important as 600,000 Iraqi deaths, etc., but it is all part of the same story about incompetence, lies, and hypocrisy. WAKE UP AMERICA.

I think it's sad that this hasn't been brought to light sooner, instead of now. The democrats will
stoop to anything at election time.
It's like the pot calling the kettle black. They've all got
skeletons in their closets. Until
this country puts God first again,
it'll just get worse. If God fearing men & women were elected to
gov. offices, dem or rep, maybe
this filth wouldn't happen. Foley
is sick, sick, sick. He should have
been stopped years ago.

I agree with ChaseMonster. Brian Ross and his team should be lauded for this. It's just the scraping of the iceberg! I think there will be so many more deviant activities being revealed in the political arena; members being "ratted" out. If anyone has skeletons in their "closets" they better not run for office or at the very least, resign!

Let's see now. Hastert contends he never heard about Foley's inappropriate solicitations of pages. Foley's ex-chief of staff, Fordham, affirms he notified Hastert's office. Other sources have also claimed Hastert was informed about Foley. So, who has the most to lose in this "he said, she said"? The one that has the most to lose is the party lying. That solves it.

What makes no sense is why would staffers withhold this kind of information from leaders? The fact is they wouldn't.

Republican family values!

This behaviour may be unacceptable but it is also very common. Foley has been caught but it is unrealistic to assume he is the only one. When I was a fourteen year old at a boarding school in Scotland, my Housemaster took me aside for a chat the upshot of which was, If anyone touches you there (vague gesture in that direction) or talks about it, hit him between the eyes. Young men need to be empowered and encouraged to stand up to predators.

"This scandal has "The Revenge of William Jefferson Clinton" written all over it. Did he grease a republican palm to achieve this?"

This is the most asinine thing I've read on this subject yet. It
shows the vicious insidious hate that people still harbor in their hearts for a man whose popularity GW bush has never and will never know. Even if this ridiculous post is true...bravo, President Clinton. I say "president" because the man actually won an election...twice.

Had even a nominal investigation been initiated into Mr. Foley by the Speaker's office, all of this would have been revealed many years ago...

Sheila Bond, are you saying that if only Bubba hadn't perpetrated this dirty trick, then Foley would still be typing away at his desk, chatting up pages, protected by Hastert?

Why yes, that's exactly what you are saying.

Shame on the Democrats for spoiling the status quo for the Republicans, who put Foley in charge of the Committee on Missing and Exploited Children.

Foley should be in Jail along with every other Worthless Republican that allowed him to Prey upon these boys!

No one wants to hear this but it needs to be said. Foley lives one block from the Page dorm, which is across the street from his Congressional office. The Page dorm is also right across the street from the entrance to the Congressional garage, so any Member leaving the garage would have driven by the Page mixer. Don't make too much of this.

I'm not sure Foley qualifies as a "Predator", because its pretty clear he was looking for consenual a partner and not someone he could force himself upon. He's a perv, but not a predator.

However, while being a perv might not be a jailable offense, it is grounds to AT LEAST support someone ELSE to fill his seat ASAP (I'm talking about the Rep. leadership). Their obvious desire to not rock the boat and, even more offensive, their blatant enabling behavior (supporting him in multiple elections despite this) are what I find more really objectionable.

I get so sad when I hear Republican talking-heads saying "The FBI didn't think there was enough to investigate, so there was no reason for the House leadership to" - Congressmen ought to to be a held to a higher standard than "not bad enough to prosecute".

"The democrats will
stoop to anything at election time."

I know what you mean, LEN...like shutting down the government before the holidays...wait! That was'nt the Democrats was it?

It is easy to understand that Republican staffers may have been aware, but didn't inform/confront their leaders. This happens everyday --many people will not tell the emperor he's naked. That's why whistle blowers have to be protected.

sad

bill clinton is responsible for everything that has ever happened

the republicans are not responsible for anything that has ever happened

questions??

It seems clear now that the reason Foley wanted the page in the first email to become public to tell him his birth date wasn't to send him a present.

I wonder if the hard drive search of Foley's computers will show that he kept some kind of reminder lists to alert him to when the kids turned 18. He's a true predator.

And no young person, even one over 18, should ever be asked for nude photos, especially ones that could be published on the net. The kids who responded may never feel secure again, knowing their photos are floating around.

And, yes, I feel that this ties in with the Republicans' refusal to do anything about the Marianas prostitution.

I'm now wondering about Foley's trips and ties to Haiti.

The scariest thing to me is how easily Foley could have been blackmailed. He was a CONGRESSMAN for goodness' sakes! What would Karl Rove do with this kind of info? What about Abramoff???

Yup, yup, yup, cruisin' around in his BMW. Doesn't sound so bad. What about the fact that a former page SAID HE HAD SEX WITH FOLEY. That story isn't pushed around so much. Why not? It's not just naughty little emails.

The hypocrisy never ends.

These repubs need to be prosecuted for this coverup. This is just outrageous that a predator of children would be covered up because he was good at raising money.

THE WHOLE GOVERNMENT IS MADE UP OF LIARS,CROOKS ,PERVERTS AND MURDERERS.NO MAATTER WHAT PARTY THEY HAVE SOLD OUR COUNTRY.THIS IS NO LONGER OUR U.S.A.
WAKE UP PEOPLE. VOTING IS A JOKE SO UNTIL ITS REAL AGAIN WHY BOTHER. I WOULD LIKE MY COUNTRY BACK NOW PLEASE.

So Elaine, you criticize the dems. Even if they had outed the stinky repub. They did the right thing, right? I take it you would wait, For fear of proper timing?

Oh yeah, these repubs have for many years, defined themselve as God fearing. Guest what, a lot of you people who claim to be so holy, fall for their crap over and over and over again.

So stop preaching to us. We were not fooled by their fake rightousness.

It never cease to amaze me, people who claim to be so religious, are so easily played for suckers and chumps.

My question is soes this fall into the authority figure category. I can't imagine that these kids (yes kids) would feel a lot of pressure to make contacts in the government.

good point of view but i didn't quite get it e- mail me for more details please

"Alright already. Heard enough."

Bet you did'nt say that about Monica.

Unfortunately the media has'nt heard enough...and I haven't heard enough...until I hear..."Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi".

Why argue over who leaked the info? The facts clearly show the man to be sick, and that the BMIC (Big men in Congress)did all they could to make sure no one ever knew what was going on. They were not concerned over the safety of these young impressionable young men. They allowed Foley to stay in contact and "feed" his need for young bait. They were facilitators to his illness.

So much time wasted wringing hands over how bad the Republicans are. AS IF the other party hasn't had and doesn't have its own skeletons. The more important issue is, as has been widely and wisely said by other wise people: Politicians are like underwear; they both need to be changed, and for the same reason. Polls before every election tell how much people dislike congress but like their own congressman. Until voters start holding ALL incumbents' feet to the fire, things like this will continue to happen.

It doesn't really matter WHO broke the story, it's a federal crime committed by the guy who wrote the law. He's a Republican.

How does this have anything with Dems? IMO, the Repubs deserve all the bad press that comes from this after painting themselves as supremely moral folks.

To Elaine:

I am sick and damn tired of silly and ignorant comments about "putting God first" again. This country, and including the GOP, are a bunch of religious nutcases. They are the one's screwing things up. I am so sick and damned tired of ignorant people spouting the myth that this is a "Christian nation" when nowhere in any founding document is Christ mentioned. In fact, in the Constitution, God is not even mentioned. Moreover, the person who wrote the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson, re-wrote the Bible and he was labeled a Jacobin and equated religious leaders with the zealots and tyrants (see letter to Benjamin Rush on even of election of 1800). Please stop with this absolute garbage. Religion and God are private matters, and they should remain private matters. Religion should never be the basis for any law...has never been anyway (for all you crazies who thing our laws are "christian based" because they are based on the 10 Commandments, that's stupid on its face because the 10 Commandments are Jewish). Moreover, Hammurabi's Code, which predates the 10 Commandments was the first articulation of a code of justice, so if you really want to argue that are laws are based on any ancient text, it is that.

elaine,
those who put "god first" -- fundamentalists, mostly -- are basically the problem these days, not the solution.

furthermore, you're inventing history if you think our founding fathers wanted our country guided by "religious values". religion has always had lot less to do with god than it has establishing and maintaining institutional power. exhibit a: megachurches compelling their parishioners to get involved politically. exhibit b: the catholic church and its reprehensible handling of its own scandal.

one question: will religion clean up politics, or will politics just taint religion?

i think recent events give you your answer. the holier-than-thou republican party is reeling; dirty politics has once again corrupted the pure faith. (just a hint -- THAT'S why our founding fathers didn't want the two intermingling).

i should add one thing: i don't believe there's anything wrong with spirituality, but religion is just faith wrapped in a cloak of judgement.

Someone said: FEDERAL law prohibits soliciting sex from minors (18 & under), so the DC age of consent is immaterial.

This is incorrect. Federal law cannot prohibit it if it's entirely intrastate. If Foley was in DC while he did it and the page was, too, then that law is irrelevant. The federal government cannot set the age of consent, it does not have the constitutional authority to do so. It must be in the context of interstate commerce, or the government can make receipt of federal funds contingent upon changing the age of consent (or drinking age) in a given state, but the federal government cannot set it. The federal government can say transportation across state lines cannot be for anyone under 18, but this is not the same as setting the age of consent.

Forget about the nit about age of consent. Forget about it. This man hit on teenagers while pages in Washington and after they returned home. It doesn't matter about the "age of consent"; it matters that Foley's superiors did not formaly address the situation before being outed in the press. That's the crime, folks!

Elaine sez: . Foley
is sick, sick, sick. He should have
been stopped years ago.

Forget the critics here about your religiousity, you understand the problem. He should have been stopped, and his leaders are still "serving the public" in DC, still. That's the story here.

Nancy Pelosi...Speaker of the House

Go Nancy! I am so ready!

a) many pages seek the job because they envision a future in politics

b) any page going public with the information that he had sex with Rep. Foley would have absolutely no future in elective politics, particularly in the Republican Party

All of the loyal party followers out there remind me of a small section in Douglas Adams "hitchhikers guide to the galaxy". A giant robot lands a space craft on earth and demands to speak to their lizards. When Arthur asks Ford why the robot asks for the lizards, Ford explains that the planet that the robot is from is noted throughout the universe as the most democratic government, but it is ruled by lizards. The humans detest the lizards. Arthur asks Ford why the humans k