Hastert Lies Again, Gets Caught Again

Only Way to the Truth---Torture Hastert by Tom D'Antoni

Is there anything worse, in the minds of most Americans than being a sexual predator to underage kids? Why it's right up there with rape and murder. Finding out who in Congress knew about Foley, when did they know it, and why didn't they do anything about it is as important to the nation as finding out who was behind 9/11.

Are our children worth less?

There's only one way to get this information. Send Foley, Hastert, Boehner, and the rest of them to Guantanamo and torture the information out of them.

I mean, that's this administration's policy, isn't it? Why restrict it to Muslims? Why not just expand it to all involved in anti-social activities, especially one as serious as this.

That we'd have to build a double-wide waterboard for Hastert is beside the point.

Habeas Corpus? Pfaff! If President Bush can waive it for Muslims, he can waive it for those who prey on our children, right?

It's the policy of the administration that Bush has the power to choose whom to torture. It's only logical thing to do, and the only way to get the truth out of these Republican Congressional leaders.

Living by the sword makes for tough payback.

Flip-Flopping Denny?
October 03, 2006 5:19 PM

ABC's Lisa Chinn reports: House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL), under fire from both sides of the aisle for his actions in the Foley email scandal, was asked directly by a reporter in yesterday's press conference if the leadership had asked for Foley's resignation.

On Monday, Hastert said: "I think Foley resigned almost immediately upon the outbreak of this information, and so we really didn't have a chance to ask him to resign, and I left at the very end of the session, almost, before the very last vote."

But during Tuesday's radio interview with Rush Limbaugh, he seemed to change his story, saying: "We found out about it, asked him to resign. He did resign. He's gone." He then repeated that line in a Tuesday interview with Sean Hannity.
http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalradar/2006/10/flipflopping_de.html

Aide said he warned Hastert's office about Foley 3 years ago
Report: Aide said he warned Hastert's office about Foley
October 4, 2006
Story Highlights• NEW: Aide said he warned speaker's office about Foley 3 years ago

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A former aide to former Rep. Mark Foley said Wednesday he notified House Speaker Dennis Hastert's office of concerns about Foley's behavior over three years ago -- two year before previous accounts have suggested top GOP leaders knew of the issue, according to The Associated Press.

There was no immediate response to the report from Hastert's office.

Kirk Fordham told the AP about his warning after resigning Wednesday amid allegations that he tried to protect Foley from congressional inquiries into his inappropriate contacts with teenage pages.

Fordham was the top aide to Rep. Tom Reynolds, R-New York, and once held the same job for Foley. In his resignation statement, Frodham vigorously denied taking any inappropriate action on Foley's behalf.

"When I sought to help Congressman Foley and his family when his shocking secrets were being revealed, I did so as a friend of my former boss, not as Congressman Reynolds' chief of staff," Fordham said. "I reached out to the Foley family, as any good friend would, because I was worried about their emotional well-being. At the same time, I want it to be perfectly clear that I never attempted to prevent any inquiries or investigation of Foley's conduct by House officials or any other authorities."

Reynolds is the chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, which is working to keep the GOP in control of the House in November's elections. The scandal not only has rocked the Republican leadership but it has become an issue in Reynolds' upstate New York district just weeks before the vote.

"It is clear the Democrats are intent on making me a political issue in my boss's race, and I will not let them do so," Fordham wrote in his resignation.

Reynolds would not say Wednesday whether he asked Fordham to quit. However, Reynolds said he thought it was "inappropriate" for his chief of staff to negotiate with a news outlet over its coverage. And he said Fordham believed he was becoming a "distraction."

Foley, a six-term Florida Republican, resigned Friday after his e-mails to a teenage boy who had served as a congressional page became public -- and as ABC News was about to air more explicit records of instant messages the congressman exchanged with other pages.

ABC reported that Fordham offered the network an exclusive on Foley's resignation if it agreed not to air transcripts of the most explicit messages. Wednesday, citing unnamed GOP sources, it said Fordham had interceded with Republican leaders to keep concerns raised by the family of a Louisiana teen from the full three-member board that oversees the page program.

The network also reported that Fordham's associates consider him a scapegoat for Hastert, R-Illinois, who has been sharply criticized for his handling of the issue. But Ron Bonjean, a spokesman for the speaker, said Hastert had no advance knowledge of Fordham's resignation, nor did he demand it.

Conservatives rally behind Hastert
The resignation comes as key conservative House members voiced support for Hastert but questioned how he handled the Foley matter.

The call for Hastert's resignation came Tuesday in an editorial on The Washington Times Web site. The editorial charged that "either [Foley] was grossly negligent ... or he deliberately looked the other way." (Full story)

A spokesman for Hastert said the speaker would not step down.

And in a statement released Wednesday, Rep. Mike Pence, R-Indiana, and Joe Pitts, R-Pennsylvania, said "regardless of our reservations about how this matter was handled administratively, we believe Speaker Hastert is a man of integrity who has led our conference honorably and effectively throughout the past eight years. Speaker Dennis Hastert should not resign.

Rep. Pence is chairman of the influential Republican Study Committee, and Pitts is chairman of the conservative Values Action Team.

A key Hastert ally, Republican Ray LaHood of Illinois, called the call for Hastert to step down "absolute nonsense." (Watch the GOP defend Speaker Hastert -- 2:54)

"The speaker brought us through 9/11. He's helped the president with major legislative initiatives," LaHood told CNN on Wednesday.

"He's been a good, strong speaker and has been able to deal with ethical conduct of members of Congress. ... This idea he should resign is absolute nonsense, and it's just a lot of political fodder for people who want to make hay 35 days before the election," LaHood said.

Shadegg shows support
Arizona Republican Rep. John Shadegg also rallied to Hastert's side, by circulating a letter that says the calls for Hastert to resign "are unwarranted and fundamentally unfair."

The letter, dated Tuesday, said at least two newspapers, including the Miami Herald, knew of an e-mail exchange between Foley and a page "for months" (Read letter) and didn't view the contacts as significant.

"And, after conducting their own inquiries, they decided not to publish the story or pursue the matter further," the letter continued.

"To demand (Hastert's) resignation based on the current facts and before the investigation that he has called for is completed, is unwarranted and wrong," the letter said.

But another member of the Republican leadership, Rep. Roy Blunt of Missouri, said Tuesday said he would have handled the Foley situation differently, the AP reports.

"I think I could have given some good advice here, which is you have to be curious. You have to ask all the questions you can think of," Blunt said, according to the AP. "You absolutely can't decide not to look into activities because one individual's parents don't want you to."
------------------------------------

CNN's Dana Bash, Deirdre Walsh and Andrea Koppel contributed to this report.

Republican leadership lies
Pages are reporting that they told the Republican leadership about Foley's behavior in 1995, eleven years ago, and they did nothing about it---except to encourage Foley to run for office againand again and again.

BBB

True BBB. Much of this fiasco could have been prevented if the country was not run by hypocrites.

I see fit to respond. If someone accuses someone of lying, and provides no evidence of it, I sometimes wish to disabuse them of the notion that anything has been proven or even supported. Frankly, I think it shows irresponsibility and lack of discipline to try to support one's political ideology with careless, baseless accusations.

Brandon, imo you just play games with the obvious. If Hastert misspoke is that a lie? Here's what was reoprted in my article above, "On Monday, Hastert said: "I think Foley resigned almost immediately upon the outbreak of this information, and so we really didn't have a chance to ask him to resign, and I left at the very end of the session, almost, before the very last vote."

But during Tuesday's radio interview with Rush Limbaugh, he seemed to change his story, saying: "We found out about it, asked him to resign. He did resign. He's gone." He then repeated that line in a Tuesday interview with Sean Hannity." On the one hand Hastert says "we really didn't have a chance to ask him to resign" and on the other hand he says "We found out about it, asked him to resign. He did resign." Such contradictory statements made so close together. Looks like one of the times he was lying. You pretend it aint lying. Why? Looks to me like you're covering up for Hastert's lies. IMO when Hastert steps aside it will be his contradictory statements (lies) that led to his downfall.

Are you actually not smart enough to know that you need to cite one source with each of the two contradictory statements?

Re: Aide said he warned Hastert's office about Foley 3 years

If this actually is true, Hastert should be censured and relieved from his leadership position.

I gotta admit that it appears to me that Hastert lied or at the very least tried to mislead listeners of the Limbaugh show. But my comment is "so what?" That's what politicians all do. Heck, that's what Clinton did and we never had many democrats crying for his head, now did we? (I hate bringing up Clinton since he is such old news, but I couldn't think of another example on the spur of the moment.)

Personally, this whole thing is being blown so far out of proportion that I think it is silly. The emails that have been supposedly known about for years, while not proper, did not warrant any major concern (unless you attempt to make the argument that because he was gay, people should have been concerned. But then, I thought dems argue that gays are no more likely to take advantage of children than heteros, so the fact he was gay should not even be considered.) I'm more concerned with the IM's that were certainly telling and should have had republican leadership investigating once they were known about. And from what I understand, the IM's were not know about until last week at which point Foley resigned.

So again, I'm just not sure what the big deal is here. But it is obviouse that there is proof that Hastert either lied on the Limbaugh show or in his prior statement. I'm afraid Brandon that the proof you seek is out there.

Brandon, hahaha. We have Hastert on video and audio contradicting himself. Both of his statements have been played multiple times on national tv. But there will always be those who will pretend to their graves he didn't lie. It takes all kinds.

CR, have you actually read the emails in question?

Cycloptichorn

Cy, I've read some of the emails. Have I read all of them? Probably not. But the news I have read or seen seems to indicate that the emails are not nearly of the same nature as the IM's. The couple I did see, while they may be indicative of a problem and moreso now in hindsight, do not seem to me to be worthy of an investigation prior to the IM's. The IM's are of course another matter, and if they were known for any length of time would be a major issue with me.

But again, I doubt I've read a great many of the emails. Bottom line for me is that the pervert is out and if warranted criminal charges will hopefully be filed.

You're an imbecile. I never said he didn't lie, nor did I imply it. I said that the opening post presented no evidence, and I was right. You reason like a child. I don't care what you have on video. If you're going to make a claim, present evidence, don't assure me that you have it somewhere.

Brandon, I have yet to resort to calling you names. I dont have to since the truth in my original article clearly shows Hastert lied. Not to you of course. That's ok by me.

Your original post contained these gems:



and



"Never been any indication?" "By all accounts?" Yes, you certainly did document your assertion with airtight proof.

Indeed, he may have lied. I don't know. But anyone who thinks that "By all acounts" constitutes proof isn't even worth arguing with.

Really?

Here's Ramesh Ponnuru, noted conservative writer for NRO, talking about the emails over at the Corner:



There was enough information in those emails to set of warning bells of sexual predation. This is pretty much agreed upon by everyone who has actually taken the time to read the emails, and it isn't just hindsight either; Ramesh is correct to point out that if Hastert wanted to have more information, he could have at least read the damn emails!

There is also the point that Fordham has raised, that he informed leadership about this on more than one occasion over the last several years. This isn't tied to any specific emails at all, so I would think that Fordham probably knows more about the inappropriate behavior than he is letting on.

Even the most cursory of investiagtions - a pulling of the HD on his computer - would have revealed the truth. Instead, they went to the guy and asked him if he was committing a crime, he said know, and they left it at that because they didn't want to investigate. You know that's true as much as everyone else does, the only matter now is proving it.

Cycloptichorn

Brandon, in my original article Hastert's people say he misspoke. A not so clever way of admitting he lied. Like the new poll that says 58% of Americans say Bushie deliberately "misled" us into war in Iraq. Deliberately misled aint lying right?

In your original article, you have no citations to back up your claim of what people said and did. As for the poll, testimonials prove nothing. As I said, you reason like a child.