WP: How Foley skirted rules to pursue pages

[Amonester]

How Foley skirted rules to pursue pages
Former members of congressional program describe lawmaker’s advances

By Amy Goldstein and Elizabeth Williamson
The Washington Post
Updated: 42 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - They met on the House floor. He was a 16-year-old political junkie, dressed in the drab navy blazer and gray slacks of a congressional page, rushing phone messages to the members he served. Rep. Mark Foley was tanned and charismatic, a successful politician in his mid-40s willing to joke with him between votes.
<...>
The messages were innocent at first. But after the young man moved home, he recalled, Foley started asking about "my roommates, if I ever saw them naked." Within months, the congressman was dangling a job offer, "because I was a hot boy," he said. Two years later, when he contacted Foley for advice on D.C. hotels, the congressman wrote back: "You could always stay at my place. I'm always here, I'm always lonely, and I'm always up for oral sex."
<...>
The FBI and Florida officials are conducting criminal investigations into Foley's dealings with former pages.

Foley was able to operate unimpeded for years -- forming the friendships with pages that would be the seeds of online relationships later on -- in spite of rigorous supervision of the teenagers in the congressional page program and a "zero-tolerance" policy for pages and adults who broke its rules.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15366476

[proud2BlibKansan]

1. Oh but he has a drinking problem and he was molested

That means his pedophilia was okay.

[Erika]

3. As Drudge said, it was the 16 year old's fault

The GOP never does accountability. They don't even understand the concept.

[Critters2]

2. Ewww. Dammit! I was all ready for bed, and now

I'm going to have to take a shower.

[JohnnyLib2]

4. Thanks, WP==

keep that story alive!

[SheWhoMustBeObeyed]

5. Excellent report, shows Foley was clearly stalking boys

Just "running into" pages he knew were dining at certain restaurants, and parking his car near the page building on graduation day so they would see him - his power an irresistible lure. Admiring the "big hands" of boys so young, conservative and sheltered that they didn't know a come-on when they heard it.

Great story. Kudos to WP for keeping it in the public eye.

[Demit]

7. I don't think 16 yr olds are that sheltered. There are "friendly" men in

every walk of life. More than likely they knew—or suspected—and were intimidated by the power he had. Kids have pretty good bullshit detectors. I guess some of the more trusting pages were trying to give him the benefit of the doubt, but as soon as he got into asking for personal physical details they knew.

[The Count]

9. You do realize the point is to absolve other cronies from responsibility

right? It will certainly have the opposite effect, but the motive here is to defend hastert&comp who all knew this was going on for years. Zero tolerance policy my ass!

[babylonsister]

6. This is just so classy of Foley-not! Ugh. nt

[The Count]

8. Brought to you by Hastert's defense team - how obvious can you get?

Just as the rthics investigation blows huge holes in the "zero tolerance" policy for pages, here comes WaPo with the "few bad apples" BS....

[BruceMcF]

10. I thought Foley was not interested in skirts ...

... so why is Hastert trying to hide in Foley's skirts?

This story just gets confusing sometimes.

[chat_noir]

11. another great Walt Handelsman animation

http://www.newsday.com/news/opinion/ny-wh-congressionalpagescandal,0,6127669.flash