By Brendan O’Reilly

The odds that the balance of power in Congress shifts keep looking better and better for the Democrats.

On Sept. 29, Rep. Mark Foley, the Republicans’ House deputy whip, submitted a letter of resignation to the speaker of the House. His sudden departure followed the revelation that he had sent questionable online messages to a 16-year-old male, who was a page. Congressional pages are high school juniors who serve as messengers and perform administrative tasks.

Foley’s resignation is not enough. He has checked himself into a rehabilitation clinic, claiming he thinks he suffers from an addiction to alcohol. Even if his alcoholism is real and not a fabrication to excuse his behavior, it does not absolve him from responsibility. He belongs in jail.

“His immediate resignation must now be followed by the full weight of the criminal justice system,” Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert, Majority Leader John Boehner and Majority Whip Roy Blunt wrote in a joint statement.

“Sex offenders are not petty criminals,” Foley said during a hearing on the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act in June 2005. “They prey on our children like animals and will continue to do it unless stopped.” Foley’s feelings on that act may have changed now that he belongs on the list of offenders.

Foley introduced to the House the “Internet Stopping Adults Facilitating the Exploitation of Today’s Youth Act” last July. That legislation targets those who profit financially off of child pornography but not those who download it. Good thing for Foley, who solicited minors to e-mail him pictures of themselves.

When the members of the congressional Missing and Exploited Children’s Caucus appoint a new co-chairman, they may want to check the candidates’ old e-mails and instant messenger history before making their decision.

If they notice the candidate was engaged with a minor in a line of questioning that included, “Maf54 (7:48:00 PM): did you spank it this weekend yourself,” they should probably find someone else. Otherwise they will end up with another Mark Foley, a.k.a. Maf54.

In a sane world there would be another resignation pending, that of Speaker Hastert. Hastert said no one in the Republican leadership saw the Foley episode coming. Hastert’s assertion is at odds with what Rep. Tom Reynolds (R-NY), chair of the Republican Congressional Campaign Committee, has been saying. Reynolds said he had informed Hastert months ago about concerns regarding Foley’s e-mails and instant messages to male congressional pages.

The storm of controversy resulted in the webmaster of the U.S. House Page Alumni Association, Towson senior Matthew Loraditch, disabling the USHPAA Web site.

Eric Kaufman, a freshman at Duke University, was a congressional page the same summer Foley sent the inappropriate online messages that surfaced. Kaufman said in a Facebook message that Katie Couric’s producer, The New York Times and Inside Edition bothered him non-stop the weekend following Foley’s resignation. He is not talking just yet, however, “My first priorities are preserving the dignity and reputation of both the House and the House Page Program.”

The resignation came so close to Election Day that there is not enough time to hold a special election. Foley’s congressional seat, representing Florida’s 16th district, will remain vacant until the 110th Congress is sworn in. Until then, the congressional office and Foley’s former staff will be under the supervision of the Clerk of the House. Unfortunately, the people of Florida’s 16th will not have a voice in Washington to vote for them.

The Florida Department of State division of elections did not have sufficient time to remove Foley’s name from the ballot, even though he has withdrawn from the congressional race. The Republicans named State Rep. Joe Negron to replace Foley as their candidate. Negron will receive votes that were cast in Foley’s name.

The race was considered a lock for the GOP before the controversy started. Now the Democratic candidate, Tim Mahoney, has a growing chance of winning the seat. It is one of 15 seats that the Dems need to gain to take back the House majority. Mahoney is campaigning on strong family values and personal responsibility, two things Foley lacks.

Brendan O’Reilly is a junior print journalism student. You may e-mail him at [email protected]