Foley Resigns from Congress over E-mail Sent to Teenage Boy

Congressman Mark Foley's sexual orientation has long been something everyone thought they knew - though Foley has alway refused to answer questions about his sexuality.

The questions took a whole new turn after he resigned from Congress on Friday, September 29th, effective immediately. He resigned in the wake of the publication of e-mails by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. The e-mails were written to a teenage boy who had been a page or assistant in the House of Representatives.

The e-mails included a request that the boy send Foley a picture of himself. He apparently also sent the boy a text message asking "Do I make you a little horny?"

The group asked the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct to investigate the exchange Foley had with the boy.

"The House of Representatives has an obligation to protect the teenagers who come to Congress to learn about the legislative process," the group wrote, adding that the committee, "must investigate any allegation that a page has been subjected to sexual advances by members of the House."

President Bush won Foley's seat with 55% and Foley had long been posting double digit leads of Democrat Tim Mahoney. Mahoney has been on television for months and is very well funded and now that Foley is not running, the situation has severely complicated Republican efforts to keep control of Congress.

Foley will remain on the ballot, though his votes will go to a replacement candidate chosen those members of the executive committee of the Florida Republican Party who represent those counties who are in whole or in part represented by Foley.

At present, only State Representative Joe Negron has expressed interest in being named the replacement.

Whoever is named will face serious financial hurdles. Much of the district is within the expensive Palm Beach County media market, but the candidate will also have to purchase media in a number of other counties and media markets. In truth, this means that that the National Republican Congressional Committee will have to spend a great deal of money in the district - money they would much prefer to spend in other parts of the country.