Conservative icon Richard Viguerie calls on House Republican leadership to resign by John in DC - 10/04/2006 12:06:00 PM
Richard Viguerie is one of the founders of the conservative movement. It doesn't get any bigger than this, short of Ronald Reagan speaking out from the afterlife. I just received an email from Viguerie to his email list, to which I subscribe. The email is entitled: "Viguerie Calls for Immediate Resignation of House GOP Leaders" These are the high points.
1. Calls GOP leadership "enablers" to Foley's offense.
Viguerie stated that any public official who takes advantage of a page or intern – someone to whom they are “in loco parentis” (in the place of a parent) – should be treated the same as a teacher or member of the clergy who commits a similar act. “And anyone who covers up such behavior should have the full wraith of the authorities and of the public fall upon them, because they are the enablers who made it possible.”
2. Calls Speaker Hastert's call for a Justice Dept investigation a possible "cover up."
He said that calls for a Justice Department investigation “could be part of an effort to cover this up until after the election. Once an investigation is under way, they may claim, falsely, that they can’t comment on an ongoing investigation.” He said House GOP leaders must “tell the American people the truth right now, not sweep it under the rug for the next six weeks.”
3. House GOP leaders will do "whatever it takes to hold onto power," no matter how "despicable."
Said Viguerie: “This isn’t an isolated situation. It is only the most recent example of Republican House leaders doing whatever it takes to hold onto power. If it means spending billions of taxpayers’ dollars on questionable projects, they’ll do it. If it means covering up the most despicable actions of a colleague, they’ll do it.”
4. House GOP leaders have "lost their moral rudder."
“They’ve lost their moral rudder,” Viguerie said of any House leaders who tolerated Foley’s behavior.