The Arlington Group and the Mark Foley Scandal

Let's see if I got this right. Foley's
indiscretions were swept under the carpet by the Republican leadership in the

House of Representatives not because of political considerations which would
force the Republican majority to acknowledge the presence of a pedophile among
their ranks and might endanger their majority status in the November elections.

The Religious Right has accused the so-called "radical gay
rights movement" of many things over the years. Now it appears that gay
activists are responsible for the Mark Foley scandal in the House of Representatives.

In a press release dated October 3, 2006, the Arlington
Group, an umbrella coalition of Religious Right leaders, said: "We are very
concerned that the early warnings of Mr. Foley's odd behavior toward young male
pages may have been overlooked or treated with deference, fearing a backlash
from the radical gay rights movement because of Mr. Foley's sexual orientation.
It appears that the integrity of the conservative majority has given way to
political correctness, trading the virtues of decency and respect for that of
tolerance and diversity. No one should be surprised at the results of such a
tragic exchange."

Let's see if I got this right. Foley's indiscretions were
swept under the carpet by the Republican leadership in the House of
Representatives not because of political considerations which would force the
Republican majority to acknowledge the presence of a pedophile among their
ranks and might endanger their majority status in the November elections. No,
the Foley incident developed into a full-fledged scandal from fears of "a
backlash from the radical gay rights movement because of Mr. Foley's sexual
orientation." That explains why the speaker of the House and other Republican
leaders allowed Foley to remain in office and, presumably, to continue making
untoward advances to underage pages.

Somehow, I find this logic almost as twisted as the
justifications from Foley himself and from the Republican leadership in the
House. I may have missed it, but no one to my knowledge has recently accused the
House leadership of "tolerance and diversity."