Demagogue

Perhaps the pressure of a tough re-election campaign has finally gotten to him. Perhaps he's tired of being asked about Foleygate. Who knows? But for whatever reason, some bizarre words came out of the mouth of Rep. Christopher Shays (R-Conn.) yesterday:

Republican Rep. Christopher Shays defended the House speaker's handling of a congressional page scandal, saying no one died like during the 1969 Chappaquiddick incident involving Democratic Sen. Ted Kennedy.

"I know the speaker didn't go over a bridge and leave a young person in the water, and then have a press conference the next day," the embattled Connecticut congressman told The Hartford Courant in remarks published Wednesday.

"Dennis Hastert didn't kill anybody," he added.

Gee, that's setting the bar high.

Bill Clinton didn't kill anyone in the Lewinsky scandal. How do you think Congressional Republicans would have reacted if Democrats in 1998 had offered that defense for Clinton?

Okay, congressman, I agree that Ted Kennedy provided highly unsatisfactory explanations for his behavior in the Chappaquiddick incident. But why should that provide cover for Hastert?