New York Republican joins the sex-scandal club

May 8, 2008

It’s been a while since the Republicans had a sex scandal. We had Mark Foley’s page scandal in ’06, David Vitter’s prostitution problem and Larry Craig’s bathroom incident in ’07, but it’s been a little quiet lately. Indeed, the last few sex scandals have been Dems (Gov. Spitzer in New York, State AG Dann in Ohio, and Mayor Kilpatrick in Detroit).

It seems Vito Fossella is helping pick up the slack.

Fossella, a Republican congressman who represents Staten Island, got into a little trouble last week in Virginia, where he was arrested for DUI. He was caught with a blood alcohol level of 0.17 — over twice the legal limit in the state.

If convicted, Fossella would have to serve up to five days in jail. As a rule, incarceration is generally a problem for members of Congress seeking re-election. “The prospect of jail time would make it very hard for him to run again,” Cook Political Report House analyst David Wasserman said. “The difference between serving jail time and pleading down to a lesser charge makes a huge difference in Fossella’s political future.”

As it turns out, that’s the least of Fossella’s troubles.

On Monday, the New York Daily News ran a front-page story about his relationship with a “mystery woman,” Laura Fay, a retired Air Force officer who posted his bail even though Fossella’s chief of staff lives nearby.

Reporters in New York hinted in their stories that Fossella might be the father of Fay’s toddler, but even the implication drew an angry denunciation from the lawmaker’s spokesperson, who said the accusation did not even dignify a response.

That is, until this morning, when Fossella fessed up.

Roll Call reported this afternoon:

Rep. Vito Fossella (R-N.Y.), wracked by controversy since his drunken-driving arrest last week, has just issued a statement in which he confessed that he has had an extramarital relationship with the woman who bailed him out of jail following the arrest — and that he is the father of her young daughter.

“I have had a relationship with Laura Fay, with whom I have a three year old daughter,” Fossella said in a statement. My personal failings and imperfections have caused enormous pain to the people I love and I am truly sorry.

“While I understand that there will be many questions, including those about my political future, making any political decisions right now are furthest from my mind. Over the coming weeks and months, I will to continue to do my job and I will work hard to heal the deep wounds I have caused.”

Perhaps now might be a good time to note that Fossella has an 81% rating from the Christian Coalition for his “pro-family” votes, and supported a constitutional amendment to prevent gays from destroying the sanctity of marriage. (Fossella also voted to impeach Bill Clinton over an extra-marital affair.)

No word yet on whether Republican leaders will call for Fossella’s resignation, but it’s probably safe to assume his political future is not bright. Dems have been planning to target this district anyway, and now the DCCC has an added incentive.

Do I even have to say it?

IOKIYAR(UYG) (Unless you’re gay)

  • I do love the smell of burning hypocrisy in the…well, the afternoon in this case.

  • $10 says his supporters try to spin this into further proof that he values families: He loves families so much he had to have two!

    And hey, he didn’t try to talk his mistress into getting an abortion!

  • At least he went to see his kid and his other “wife,” instead of abandoning them or “throwing them under a bus,” as is the usual behavior of these Washington hypocrites. And Fay appears to be a lot more interesting and attractive than his stay-at-home Politician’s Wife back in Staten Island…AD

  • They confess, say they are sorry and are suffering personally and so should not be punished politically also. Then they refuse to talk about it and all is forgiven. These are the “family values”, hypocrisy be damned.
    Doing what he condemned Clinton for doing or ignoring the ‘sanctity’ of marriage has no consequences if you just refuse to talk about it. By election time it won’t even be an issue.

  • Re # 2, the great thing about being a hypocrite is that you never have to admit it.

    The GOP will go to the well again, and roll out their “pro-family” BS, and the sheeple will fall for it.

  • Does anyone know who the are democrats who are running in that district?

    it seems like it has been a publican district for a long time.

  • The implication drew an angry denunciation from the lawmaker’s spokesperson, who said the accusation did not even dignify a response.

    That is, until this morning, when Fossella fessed up.

    LMAO

  • Since I don’t suffer from IIS (Irony Impairment Syndrome) like so many Republicans do, this post and the accompanying comments strike me as indescribably funny.

    My favorite line is CB’s own: “As a rule, incarceration is generally a problem for members of Congress seeking re-election.” 🙂

  • A Democrat would already be burned at the stake. Fossella will quite likely get a pass and standing ovations for fessin’ up, just like Vitter. Staten Island is heavily Roman Catholic, and derivative Italian. The mob has also been known to hang out there in substantial numbers. The RCs get to confess and be contrite in private. The born-agains have to do it all in public. In both cases forgiveness is assured. Let’s see if the double standard for Democrats and Rethugs applies again.

    When will the American Sheeple develop enough of a brain to punish hypocrisy, and not human frailty, or just normal human behavior.

  • http://www.electoral-vote.com has a little para on the subject. It starts with this gem:
    The Republican slogan in the Presidential election of 1884 was “Ma, ma, where’s my pa?,” a reference to the fact that Democrat Stephen Cleveland (commonly called “Grover”) had fathered an illegitimate child. Cleveland won anyway and Democrats famously added a line to the chant: “Gone to the White House, ha, ha, ha.” Fathering an illegitimate child wasn’t a big deal for a politician in 1884.

  • The Repub’s have it all, they can’t manage the nations money, they support torture, they are such cowardly bullies they would pre-emptively sucker punch some little beaten down 3rd world pipsqueak country on a lie, yet be so criminally incompetent as to become bogged down in their self created quagmire of choice for 5 years wastfully killing and maiming our best and brightest while squandering a trillion dollars in treasure, willfully negelect our returning warriors, they possess a healthy dose of sexual self loathing and the family values of a feral tomcat, and they believe, support and defend Constitutional end runs to subvert basic human and civil rights, plus the right of habeas corpus and access to the judicial system.

    What a pityiful pathetic political party !

  • 80% of the electorate can’t stand Hoover-Bush, they hate his century-long war, they see fat cat rethuglican donors cashing in on billions of oil profits and war profiteering, as Mr. and Mrs. Joe Six-pack are losing their homes, jobs and health insurance (47million) while getting screwed at the gas pump and the supermarket! That is what dumbya and fat cat rethuglicans have brought us –now where can rethuglicans possibly go from here? More tax cuts, a larger federal debt, more half-ass failures. Maybe a cushy book deal?

    The GOP will go to the well again, and roll out their “pro-family” BS, please give the rethugs – dumbya, McSame, Lie-berman, and gay-graham – a chance to achieve victory in Iraq and Iran over the next four years. With a surge of 100,000 – 250,000 of you now losing your jobs and homes per month in support the war, this century- long 100-years war venture will only cost about 100 -180 million more of you great Americans to lose your homes, jobs as well as the loss of your ability to purchase a college education for your children. Don’t we live in a great country or what? I want to be first to thank you great Americans for sacrificing your homes for victory in Iraq and Iran. You voted for dumbya in 2004 and you deserve the results you have. If you have not loss your home yet wait a little while McSame, a multi-millionaire and his rethuglican team will soon need you to sacrifice your home for 2008 – 2012. Remember, I told you so – Best wishes!

  • I feel bad for Vito, it’s hard enough to get one reservation for brunch on Mother’s Day

  • Clinton was not impeached because he had an affair, Clinton was impeached because he committed perjury. If your going to write a piece of yellow journalism, at least get some of the facts right

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