Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on
Republicans in the U.S. Congress continue to grapple with the controversy surrounding the resignation in disgrace of Rep. Mark Foley. Former Foley chief of staff Kirk Fordham, who subsequently became chief of staff to Rep. Tom Reynolds (chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee), has resigned following reports that he tried to stop ABC News from reporting on the sexually explicit chats that Foley had with teenagers about the Grand Old Party in his pants. But Fordham seems unwilling to play the role of fall guy in the cover-up scandal. In a news conference he told reporters that he had been warning people about Foley since 2003 or earlier, holding "more than one conversation with senior staff at the highest levels of the House of Representatives, asking them to intervene when I was informed of Mr. Foley’s inappropriate behavior." As the Washington Post's Howard Kurtz observes, "That's what's driving this whole thing, the sense that key Republicans were more concerned with the politics of the Foley mess than protecting the teenagers he was hitting up online."
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Pani113 replied on Permalink
A Partisan Issue
As little use as I have for republicans, would the dems be any different? I think it is a disservice to all childhood sexual abuse survivors to make this a partisan issue. With all the scandals coming out, maybe it is time to 1) do a complete housecleaning and bring ALL our sick secrets into the open 2) figure out why adults have such an unhealthy need to prey on children in the first place. Otherwise we are just going to stay stuck in this sick rut forever. I am not a sexual abuse survivor, but I was raised by someone who was molested as a child. Her generation could not talk about it, so it affected every part of her life. She never healed. Then there is the tragedy of those innocent Amish girls, murdered because some disturbed individual couldn't deal with his feelings. Will gloating and rejoicing that is was the depravity of the conservative reps that got exposed this time really help the situation. I am sure no one will listen, but I say we call on ALL politicans, church and business leaders to seek the help they need for the sake of future generations. A clean slate is the only hope for the future!
As those not so paranoid conspiracy theorists say "Who is the silence protecting?"
Judith Siers-Poisson replied on Permalink
re: a partisan issue
I think that your comment is very valuable from a position of advocacy for victims of sexual abuse. But I do think that there is an added dimension given that the Republican Party has done its best to claim the mantle of being the ethical, moral, family-oriented, and pro-child Party. By claiming that moral superiority, they should be held accountable not just for the actions of Foley, but particularly for whatever cover-up or sweeping under the rug may have occurred.