It’s hard to execute the rare flip-flop-flip, but House Majority Leader [tag]John Boehner[\/tag] (R-Ohio), when discussing House Speaker [tag]Dennis Hastert[\/tag] and the [tag]Mark Foley[\/tag] scandal, seem anxious to pull it off.<\/p>\n
You may recall that Boehner, whom Rep. Rodney Alexander (R-La.) spoke to directly about Foley’s emails to a 16-year-old page, initially said he spoke to Hastert<\/a> about the problem and that Hastert assured him “we’re taking care of it.” Boehner later changed his mind<\/a>, called the reporter back, and said he hadn’t<\/i> told Hastert.<\/p>\n This morning, the Majority Leader returned to his original<\/em> position<\/a>.<\/p>\n ABC’s Teddy Davis reports: In a radio interview with 700 WLW radio in Cincinnati, House Majority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) placed responsibility for the Foley matter not being handled properly on House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL).<\/p>\n “I believe I talked to the Speaker and he told me it had been taken care of,” said Boehner. “And, and, and my position is it’s in his corner, it’s his responsibility. The Clerk of the House who runs the page program, the Page Board — all report to the Speaker. And I believe it had been dealt with.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Now, it’s possible that Boehner can see that the winds are blowing in a certain direction. If Hastert resigned tomorrow, chances are Boehner would get a promotion (that is, just so long as Dems don’t win back the majority). In other words, Boehner may see Hastert struggling on the high wire and decide it’s time to give him a little push. From a personal perspective, that’s a strong motivation.<\/p>\n If that is the plan, it’ll probably be pretty effective. Hastert is already in serious trouble — having the Majority Leader place the scandal at his feet will only make matters worse.
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\nTNR’s Michael Crowley argued<\/a>, “If the GOP leadership can’t close ranks, this story isn’t close to being over.” Quite right. These guys are all House Republicans with similar ideologies, but they’re also competitors trying to avoid blame in what has become a major congressional scandal just five weeks before an election. Expect quite a bit more finger-pointing in the coming days.<\/p>\n