More proof that if you are a Republican you can do what you want, and you will be redeemed. I mean, look at Karl Rove...given credibility by our own Democrats. Look at New Gingrich, working to get his education dreams through.
It really is okay to have scandals if you are a Republican.
Mark Foley’s second actFormer U.S. Rep. Mark Foley (R, Fla) -- who resigned in 2006 after it emerged he’d sent sexually explicit e-mails and text messages to underage male House pages -- is starting a new job: radio host. Foley’s politics-themed talk show will be heard on the AM dial starting Sept. 22, in his former Palm Beach congressional district. (South Florida Sun-Sentinel)
What the commentators said
Foley’s host station, WSVU AM, is exhibiting "a certain tone deafness" here, said Mark Howard in News Corpse. The show’s title, "Inside the Mind of Mark Foley," is tasteless and off-putting, but then again, so is the idea of giving voice to a "sexual predator."
I don’t get the outrage here, said Jason Zengerle in The New Republic. It’s not like Foley’s new "glorified deejay job" is going to make him a public official again. And besides, it’s not so uncommon for sex-scandal-tarred politicians to get media jobs -- "see Eliot Spitzer’s recent turn as a Slate columnist." Foley was never convicted, and he was punished by losing his House seat, so let him earn a living in peace.
Typical TNR response.
Crooks and Liars has something to say about this.
Say What? Disgraced Republican Mark Foley Gets His Own Talk Radio ShowYes. Really. Disgraced Republican, and former Florida Rep. Mark Foley has his own radio talk show! I thought this was a parody at first, but according to ABC, it's true and the name of his show will floor you -- "Inside The Mind of Mark Foley"
..."Yikes! I'm not sure many people really want to know what's going on "inside the mind of Mark Foley." Once you get past the fantasies of sipping chocolatinis with young boys in their underwear, it's a good bet that all that's left in Foley's mind that could possibly be worked into a radio show are the same old, worn out right wing talking points. Because we need another right wing talk show
Our Democrats used his fall from grace as a political measure, not reporting it when they knew it. My DD has something to say about the way it was handled in 2006
Does Rahm's Foley Lie Matter?From Matt Stoller at MyDD
So surprise surprise, it turns out that Rahm Emanuel was lying about whether he knew anything about the Foley emails or IMs when he went on ABC's This Week at the height of the scandal. Sorry to move to come late to the party in terms of commenting on what I think might turn out to be a somewhat significant story. I don't like what Rahm did here. I don't think he had to do it, and I think he was wrong to do it. I'm not naive, of course. In politics you have to accept a certain level of cynicism in terms of the political operatives that run campaigns and the party. Dirty campaigning is an art, and it's more often than not the case that your side has to deal with people that are unseemly or lack integrity.
I just can't though let Congressman Emanuel's behavior pass without comment, so I'm going to quote Glenn Greenwald.
"It's possible that the Democratic takeover of Congress can result in genuine and meaningful -- and desperately-needed -- change for our country. But it's also possible that it could result in nothing notable, that it will produce only the most marginal and politically risk-free actions, all justified by the need not to do anything too "extreme" due to a fear of harming their 2008 electoral prospects.
Which course Democrats take will be determined by whether they are guided by political figures committed to genuine change due to a conviction that such change is needed (even if that means incurring some political risks), or whether they are driven by cynical, exclusively political and dishonest Beltway operatives like Rahm Emanuel."
Here are more details on the topic of how the Foley seat was handled.
Details from the swamp we call Florida politicsA very good Democrat, Dave Lutrin, was pushed out of the race by his own party using questionable methods...so Rahm and Karen Thurman could run a Republican millionaire for the position.
Early on in the process– in mid-2005– Dave contacted Democratic Party organizations throughout the district, as well as the state party and the DCCC in Washington. Everyone was enthusiastic and encouraging. Glen Rushing, the DCCC point person for the region, told Dave he was "just the type of candidate we're looking for." He offered to introduce him to Alabama Congressman Artur Davis, the DCCC-appointed mentor for Democratic candidates in the region, who following their first phone conversation offered to help him with his race. Rushing then promised to get him in touch with Florida DCCC chief, Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz, Emanuel's lieutenant for the Southeast.
..."Then something happened, something very dark and secretive, something people are just uncovering now. DCCC Chairman Rahm Emanuel found out something that could– and did– change the dynamics of the race in FL-16 dramatically. Emanuel became aware that Mark Foley– well-known for years Inside-The-Beltway, albeit not among his church-going constituents, as a very active (and very hypocritical) homosexual– was molesting the underage male congressional pages, and that he had been for many years. Did Emanuel call the police? Did he even call the staffers who are charged by Congress with looking out for the welfare of the pages? Doesn't look that way.
And Foley, like Rove, like Gingrich is back in the public eye as though nothing ever happened.