Why is a good Democrat like me reading the Washington Times you might ask dear gentle readers? Well, I wanted to read the reliably conservative paper’s editorial calling on House Speaker Dennis Hastert to resign.
From the Washington Times:
“The evidence was strong enough long enough ago that the speaker should have relieved Mr. Foley of his committee responsibilities contingent on a full investigation to learn what had taken place.”
“Late yesterday afternoon, Mr. Hastert insisted that he learned of the most flagrant instant-message exchange from 2003 only last Friday, when it was reported by ABC News. This is irrelevant. The original e-mail messages were warning enough that a predator -- and, incredibly, the co-chairman of the House Caucus on Missing and Exploited Children -- could be prowling the halls of Congress. The matter wasn’t pursued aggressively. It was barely pursued at all. Moreover, all available evidence suggests that the Republican leadership did not share anything related to this matter with any Democrat.”
The editorial rightly points out that the Democrats have had their share of sexual skeletons in the closet. So, don’t get too high on your horse, fellow Democrats. The higher you are; the harder you fall.
Continuing:
“House Speaker Dennis Hastert must do the only right thing, and resign his speakership at once. Either he was grossly negligent for not taking the red flags fully into account and ordering a swift investigation, for not even remembering the order of events leading up to last week’s revelations -- or he deliberately looked the other way in hopes that a brewing scandal would simply blow away.”
The editorial calls for a one-day session to elect a new speaker and suggests Rep. Henry Hyde of Illinois. Surely, you jest. I lived in Illinois for over 10 years and seem to remember some hanky-panky in his background too. Much has been written most notably in salon.com about Hyde’s extra-marital affair that must be no big deal to some, but I for one certainly don’t think this makes this Roman Catholic a beacon of righteousness.
Other than that one little "boop," the Washington Times editorial is excellent.
2 comments:
It is an odd day when I find myself in agreement with the Washington Times. Hastert seems determined to hang on. I guess the buck is supposed to stop somewhere below his exalted status.
Hastert has done much for his district, but as the leader of the House he was asleep at the switch on this one.
Thanks for stopping by, Kathy. Your blog is excellent and the discussions there interesting and thought provoking.
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