Don't Stand so Close to Me
Columnist Brian McGrory has a great piece in today’s Globe. He takes a swipe at holier-than-thou Senator Rick “Whack Job” Santorum for blaming the “liberal culture” in Boston for the priest molestation scandal a couple of years ago. I wonder if he thinks that GLAD, NOW and Planned Parenthood are to blame for the Republicans covering up for the pedophiles in their midst?
Yes, I used the plural there: Pedophiles..
According to Brian Ross at ABC News, his office has been receiving lots of tips about other members of congress that pages were routinely warned about but the Republican leadership never bothered to investigate or tell Democrats about. We will have to wait and see if any representatives are ever brought up on any charges (even Rep. Foley hasn’t been indicted for anything yet), but the court of public opinion has much lower evidentiary standards than U.S. District Court. A questionable e-mail and a former page on TV saying that he/she thought that somebody was “creepy” is all that it will take to ruin somebody at this point.
This is obviously a horrible situation. Parents hoping to create an unmatched opportunity for their children entrust them to the care of Congress. (Even though they can’t be trusted with our money, we happily send them our kids… But that’s another column.) Congress abdicates this responsibility in the name of political expediency, proving that no price is too high to pay for power.
It’s kind of idiotic, really. When the allegations first surfaced more less than 1 year ago, a full investigation should have been convened. It could have been done behind closed doors to begin with, but computers should have been seized and paiges interviewed. Once the extent of the problem was discovered, it could have been brought out to the light of day. The leadership would have lived up to it’s name and demonstrated an ability and willingness to do the right thing. They would have controlled the story.
Instead wheat we got were a bunch of hacks showing their true colors.
You can understand their logic, as flawed as it was. When the first “over friendly” e-mails were brought to the attention of the Speaker’s staff and the chair of the House Election Committee, their first instinct was to circle the wagons: How can we squash this? How can we solve the problem without associating ourselves with the perpetrator? How can we keep it quiet?
Notice the lack of what should have been the first questions on their minds: Has this guy ever hurt any of these children? Are there any other victims out there?
They didn’t want to know. And its that willful ignorance that really condemns the Republican leadership.
To the staffers’ credit, the child’s parents were consulted on the next step, and they asked that the issue not be pursued. Unfortunately, as any DA will tell you, the victim really doesn’t have a say when criminals are prosecuted. Not to mention the fact that if an investigation had been launched, they would not have even needed the recipient of the “over friendly” e-mails to testify, as the smut-filled, x-rated stuff is damning all on it’s own.
This whole tawdry, tragic affair should not be a rallying cry for Democrats. Republicans as a species are not more prone to committing these acts. What it should be is a rallying cry for all citizens; this is our fault. Our leaders in government are as bad as we deserve. If we do not demand accountability, oversight and ethics, we will get none. Its as simple as that.
Yes, I used the plural there: Pedophiles..
According to Brian Ross at ABC News, his office has been receiving lots of tips about other members of congress that pages were routinely warned about but the Republican leadership never bothered to investigate or tell Democrats about. We will have to wait and see if any representatives are ever brought up on any charges (even Rep. Foley hasn’t been indicted for anything yet), but the court of public opinion has much lower evidentiary standards than U.S. District Court. A questionable e-mail and a former page on TV saying that he/she thought that somebody was “creepy” is all that it will take to ruin somebody at this point.
This is obviously a horrible situation. Parents hoping to create an unmatched opportunity for their children entrust them to the care of Congress. (Even though they can’t be trusted with our money, we happily send them our kids… But that’s another column.) Congress abdicates this responsibility in the name of political expediency, proving that no price is too high to pay for power.
It’s kind of idiotic, really. When the allegations first surfaced more less than 1 year ago, a full investigation should have been convened. It could have been done behind closed doors to begin with, but computers should have been seized and paiges interviewed. Once the extent of the problem was discovered, it could have been brought out to the light of day. The leadership would have lived up to it’s name and demonstrated an ability and willingness to do the right thing. They would have controlled the story.
Instead wheat we got were a bunch of hacks showing their true colors.
You can understand their logic, as flawed as it was. When the first “over friendly” e-mails were brought to the attention of the Speaker’s staff and the chair of the House Election Committee, their first instinct was to circle the wagons: How can we squash this? How can we solve the problem without associating ourselves with the perpetrator? How can we keep it quiet?
Notice the lack of what should have been the first questions on their minds: Has this guy ever hurt any of these children? Are there any other victims out there?
They didn’t want to know. And its that willful ignorance that really condemns the Republican leadership.
To the staffers’ credit, the child’s parents were consulted on the next step, and they asked that the issue not be pursued. Unfortunately, as any DA will tell you, the victim really doesn’t have a say when criminals are prosecuted. Not to mention the fact that if an investigation had been launched, they would not have even needed the recipient of the “over friendly” e-mails to testify, as the smut-filled, x-rated stuff is damning all on it’s own.
This whole tawdry, tragic affair should not be a rallying cry for Democrats. Republicans as a species are not more prone to committing these acts. What it should be is a rallying cry for all citizens; this is our fault. Our leaders in government are as bad as we deserve. If we do not demand accountability, oversight and ethics, we will get none. Its as simple as that.
posted by Unknown at 9:12 AM
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