Tell Speaker Hastert -- Step Down

Contributed by Working Assets


The political world was rocked last weekend by the exploding scandal of Rep. Mark Foley (R-FL) and his sexually-explicit messages to teenage boys he met through the House page program. Foley has now resigned and checked himself into rehabilitation for alcoholism.

But what has also emerged this week is direct testimony that Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert (R-IL) was warned at least twice of Foley's predatory behavior -- and did nothing to discipline Foley or control his behavior, thus unnecessarily putting dozens if not hundreds of young people at risk. The leadership of the House of Representatives has become corrupted by its absolute power. It's time the American people demand accountability.

The first warning came in 2004, when Kirk Fordham, a senior congressional aide, spoke with Scott Palmer, Hastert's chief of staff. In Fordham's own words, he had "more than one conversation with senior staff at the highest level of the House of Representatives asking them to intervene."

The second clear warning came in the fall of 2005, when copies of Foley's email messages to a Louisiana 16-year-old were brought to Hastert's attention by Rep. Tom Reynolds. The recipient of the emails described the messages by repeating the word "sick" 13 times - and even conservative pundit Bay Buchanan has said that one of the emails "had predator stamped all over it." Hastert's defenders, however, persist in calling those emails simply "overly-friendly."

It's abundantly clear that Dennis Hastert had ample warnings of a sexual predator in his party's caucus - but took no action to ensure the safety of the House pages from Mr. Foley's predatory behavior. They even allowed Foley to remain as Chairman of the Missing and Exploited Children Caucus. Hastert should step down as Speaker immediately.

Call to action:
Tell Dennis Hastert to resign his position as Speaker of the House immediately.

Deadline:
ongoing

Additional Information:
We urge you to personalize the letter and express your views in your own words.



LINK TO SOURCE AND LETTER

Done! Thanks for pointing that out, Catherine.

Below is the auto-reply I received in response to my message...glad to know they care so much.
_______________________________________________________--

Thank you very much for contacting my office about an issue that I know
concerns you greatly. Please note that this is an auto-reply to
acknowledge that your email message has been received.


If you are a resident of the 14th Congressional District of Illinois, your
position/views expressed in your message will be logged and if requested
you will be receiving a response.


For those residing outside of the 14th Congressional District of Illinois,
your position/views expressed in your message will be logged. At this
time, due to Congressional franking privileges I am only able to respond
to residents of the 14th Congressional District of Illinois. I would
encourage you to also contact your Representative directly to express your
views. You may do so by visiting http://www.house.gov/writerep/ and
entering your zip code.


Thank you once again. Your comments are an integral part of the political
process. Without them, I would not be able to make the decisions that
affect our community and our nation.

Speaker J. Dennis Hastert
235 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
(202) 225-2976