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Former Rep. Mark Foley to appear on 'Today'
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Mark Foley, Washington's favorite former congressman/pederast, will give his first major TV interview since resigning in 2006, the Atlantic reports. A source close to Foley says that the interview is set to air on the "Today Show" either next Wednesday or the following Wednesday.
Foley resigned Sept. 29, 2006, after ABC News' Brian Ross published sexually charged IM exchanges between the Florida Republican and underage male congressional pages, including one that will live in Capitol Hill infamy:
Maf54: Do I make you a little horny?
Teen: A little.
Maf54: Cool.
The scandal hit right before the 2006 midterm elections and heralded the end of GOP dominance on Capitol Hill. Foley, previously the chairman of the House Caucus on Missing and Exploited Children, had led initiatives cracking down on online child predators, in one interview calling those offenders "sick people." Polls indicated that Foley's behavior, which was apparently covered up by Republican House leaders, cemented an impression among voters that the GOP was hopelessly corrupt. Democrats took control of the House and Senate for the first time in George W. Bush's presidency that November.
Following his resignation, Foley delivered the excuse du jour and entered rehab. Soon after, he admitted through a spokesman that he was gay and claimed to have been molested by a member of the clergy as a teenager. Months later, he was fully out though keeping a low profile. He is reportedly now working in real estate.
This past September, Florida law enforcement officials finally wrapped up an investigation into Foley's communications and announced they would not press charges. According to the Atlantic, Foley is "sober, he's not blaming his problems on alcohol, he's kibitzing about Florida politics, and he's eager to speak."
There's something in the water in Florida's 16th District. Foley's successor, Democrat Tim Mahoney, was felled on Tuesday following his own sex scandal. Mahoney admitted to "multiple" extramarital affairs, his wife is divorcing him, and the feds are investigating whether he broke any laws or misused federal money for his former mistresses.
Republican Tom Rooney takes the FL-16 seat in January.
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