A House crying out for ethics

The furor over former U.S. Rep. Mark Foley's lascivious e-mails to a young congressional page will not — and should not — subside until those who looked past or covered up his conduct are held accountable.

Currently, the focus is on Republican House Speaker Dennis Hastert. The speaker apparently knew the Florida Republican was a problem but did not take decisive action to protect the underage page.

One incontrovertible truth is that parents send their teenage boys and girls to Washington, D.C., for political experience in the congressional page program. They do so with implied trust that the adults who work with them day to day will not violate their obvious duty to protect these young people — during their service and after they leave the page program.

If Hastert knowingly swept the mess under the rug for political reasons, he must step down as speaker. Backroom deals to keep him in his job on condition he not seek the speakership next time further aggravate the public trust. For one thing, Hastert is trading something he doesn't own. He and his pal, Foley, may be the final straw for American voters, who may want this gang of hypocrites to go away now.

Foley violated public trust and has stepped down and into the sanctuary of an alcohol-treatment center. But the odious episode does not end there. The party of moral superiority cannot have it both ways: Preaching moral family values is one thing. Follow-through requires policing its own members who engage in, or look past, illicit sexual contact with young pages because it might hurt the party politically.

All of that may seem far away from our own state, but U.S. Rep. Doc Hastings, from Central Washington's 4th District, plays a role.

Hastings, the do-nothing leader of the House Ethics Committee, has a chance to step up and find out exactly who knew what, when, and then lead his committee to action. Meaningful action will take fortitude and independence. Hastings hasn't demonstrated any of either but he has a clear opportunity to surprise us.