2008 Woodie Awards
Foley scandal sparks secret glee
Commentary
Eric Strand
Issue date: 10/12/06 Section: Editorial
- Page 1 of 2 next >
Commentary by
Eric Strand
The Daily Vidette
(U-WIRE) NORMAL, Ill. - A midterm election year highlights better than anything else just how convincingly sleazy the human race can become when power and privilege are at stake.
I dare not ask but I must: Are Democrats "happy" that Mark Foley is a sexual predator?
Indeed, the Foley sex scandal seems to be the Democratic Party's leading issue and has the GOP scrambling and the media demanding to know whose fault all this is so they know who to condemn. This question has an easy answer: Mark Foley's.
For a sex scandal, the man of the hour isn't getting much attention. Stealing his spotlight is Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert, who is "sorry" for whatever role he played or did not play, but adamantly believes he shouldn't be burdened with any of the responsibility. Meanwhile, Democrats are just praying they can prove Hastert is a sexual predator accomplice. That's the type of political capital that can't be bought.
But where is Mark Foley in all of this? He's at an alcohol rehabilitation clinic in Florida, closed off to the outside world. He's dealing with a supposed alcohol addiction and considering how his homosexuality and pederasty will affect his family life.
Maybe Democrats aren't directly concerned with Foley anymore because his crime was so shocking and heinous, and therefore obviously a breach of any credible system of ethics, that they don't feel the need to further point it out. But it seems that many Democrats have lost sight of the crime itself and are now more focused on turning a sexual predator into some sort of sick political advantage.
Thus, I ask again: Are Democrats happy that Mark Foley is a sexual predator? If you were to publicly ask one of them at random they would say: "This is unacceptable, criminal behavior. As politicians, we have been instilled with the trust of our constituents and have an obligation to ..." Okay, but you didn't answer the question. Does it make you happy?
Eric Strand
The Daily Vidette
(U-WIRE) NORMAL, Ill. - A midterm election year highlights better than anything else just how convincingly sleazy the human race can become when power and privilege are at stake.
I dare not ask but I must: Are Democrats "happy" that Mark Foley is a sexual predator?
Indeed, the Foley sex scandal seems to be the Democratic Party's leading issue and has the GOP scrambling and the media demanding to know whose fault all this is so they know who to condemn. This question has an easy answer: Mark Foley's.
For a sex scandal, the man of the hour isn't getting much attention. Stealing his spotlight is Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert, who is "sorry" for whatever role he played or did not play, but adamantly believes he shouldn't be burdened with any of the responsibility. Meanwhile, Democrats are just praying they can prove Hastert is a sexual predator accomplice. That's the type of political capital that can't be bought.
But where is Mark Foley in all of this? He's at an alcohol rehabilitation clinic in Florida, closed off to the outside world. He's dealing with a supposed alcohol addiction and considering how his homosexuality and pederasty will affect his family life.
Maybe Democrats aren't directly concerned with Foley anymore because his crime was so shocking and heinous, and therefore obviously a breach of any credible system of ethics, that they don't feel the need to further point it out. But it seems that many Democrats have lost sight of the crime itself and are now more focused on turning a sexual predator into some sort of sick political advantage.
Thus, I ask again: Are Democrats happy that Mark Foley is a sexual predator? If you were to publicly ask one of them at random they would say: "This is unacceptable, criminal behavior. As politicians, we have been instilled with the trust of our constituents and have an obligation to ..." Okay, but you didn't answer the question. Does it make you happy?
