The Washington Post has a fascinating piece today on how Rep. Mark Foley's apparently well-known homosexuality was viewed in his district over the past 12 years:
To some people who have known Foley for years, the sordid details were both shocking and somewhat ironic, given his painstaking efforts to shield his private life.
Sid Dinerstein, chairman of the Palm Beach County Republican Party, said he refused to believe early reports about the page exchanges, which he dubbed "the evil e-mails." His wife was so stunned that she was convinced someone had hacked into Foley's instant-message account. "That's how far off it was from the Mark Foley we knew," he said.
Like most local officials, Dinerstein had known about Foley's sexual orientation for years. He recently ran into the congressman and his longtime companion, a Palm Beach doctor, along with Foley's sister and her husband, while dining at a local restaurant. "He didn't introduce him as his companion," said Dinerstein. "But I knew who he was from the whisper mill."
A gifted mimic, he would regale fundraising audiences and cocktail parties with imitations of former president Clinton, Florida Sen. Bill Nelson and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. "The man loved being an elected official," said Dinerstein. "He'd wake up in the morning and look for an event to attend."
Foley's orientation was widely known across his district, and most voters apparently didn't care. He was reelected to a sixth term in 2004 with 68 percent of the vote, against nominal Democratic opposition.
Local Republican Sal Abruscato said he'd suspected for years that Foley was gay. "It's been around for a long time. It's one of the worst-kept secrets. I didn't care," the 42-year-old detective said.
The piece also contained this interesting aside:
Foley served nearly 12 years in Congress and was regarded as an energetic and capable lawmaker. But he barely registered on the senior GOP leadership's radar screen. "I've never had a conversation with him," said Speaker J. Dennis Hastert. "Other than his vote on a tariff matter at one time or another, I think."
Mark Foley came into Congress as part of the famed Republican Class of 1994, which took over the House of Representatives. Due to his outstanding fundraising ability, he rose to become Deputy Whip of the House Republican Caucus. The idea that Denny Hastert, the Speaker Of the House, never even had more than one conversation with a 12-year, leading member of the Republican caucus he personally controlled is hard for me to believe. Of course, maybe Foley's orientation was well-known—and reviled—enough for a social conservative leader like Hastert to feel he should keep his safe distance.
Is Hastert going down? John Fund seems to think so:
Regardless of the brave front that Republicans are putting up, their confidence in Speaker Dennis Hastert has been shattered. He will likely be gone as Speaker when Congress convenes next January, either replaced by a Democrat or swept aside for new GOP blood.
At a minimum, Mr. Hastert has revealed a fundamental weakness in his staff operation. He admitted to reporters that a portion of a Foley email asking a page for a photograph that GOP leaders saw last year was "a red flag." But he said his staff didn't need to "bump it up to me at that time." That proved to be a fatal error.
10/5/2006 3:02 PM
MrEd wrote:
His claim about not ever talking to Foley seems pretty disingenuous. I'm happy to hear the news that Reynolds is now having to actually fight for own seat. Here's my question: The GOP is falling. Clearly the Dems are trying to stay out of the way and just let the mess continue. But at some point swing voters are going to say, "ok, I know why not to vote GOP. But why vote Dem?" And I don't think they've given them much of answer. Maybe they don't have to. Thoughts? Reply to this
10/5/2006 4:56 PM
dreux wrote:
In today's atmosphere of extreme politcal polarity, it's refreshing to read your even-handed and thoughtful observations. Seriously, keep up the great work- we need more of this. Reply to this
