Speaker Pelosi Won't Help Foley Investigators

[sabra]

Source: ABC News


House Lawyers Deny Access to Foley's House Computers

Florida law enforcement officials have been denied access to the office computers of disgraced former Congressman Mark Foley, despite a direct appeal to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi for help in their investigation of sexually explicit messages sent to current and former teenage congressional pages.

In response to a letter sent to Pelosi last month by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, House Deputy General Counsel Kerry Kircher denied the agency's request, citing the Speech or Debate Clause of the Constitution, which protects congressional papers.

"We have received (the House's) response, and our investigative team is reviewing it," FDLE spokesperson Heather Smith told ABC News. She said despite the House refusal to provide access to Foley's computers, the FDLE is still investigating the former Republican who now sells real estate in Palm Beach, Fla.

Foley resigned Sept. 29, 2006, hours after ABC News questioned him about sexually explicit messages with former congressional pages, some of whom were under the age of 18 at the time of the exchanges.

Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=4143280&page=1

[maddezmom]

1. something stinks here

:thumbsdown:

[Kikosexy2]

42. Just destroy it...

Nancy...

[rayofreason]

2. Tit for tat (no pun)?

After all Hastert covered up for Cold-Cash Jefferson.

As Mark Twaine said "We have the best Congress money can buy"

[balantz]

7. Witch's Tat?

[Kikosexy2]

25. Fancy Nancy...

should demand the missing emails and those CIA tapes in exchange...and if they try to arrest her then there should be an arrest warrant for Bushco, dickie and all others involved in the email and CIA tapes scandals...

[Diane R]

3. We need to clean house.

[rox63]

4. WTF, Nancy? n/t

[Supersedeas]

52. and on so many levels too

[balantz]

5. Another one for the "do we trust Pelosi" list.

[ixion]

6. and yet they're considering a law wherein everything we do on a computer will be monitored

I'll say it again: the government considers We, the People to be terrorists.

Thanks for standing up for democracy, Nance. NOT. :grr:

[sandnsea]

8. Retalitory political maneuvers

I think this has something to do with keeping Congress off limits so law enforcement can't be used as a political tool.

[grytpype]

9. She has to defend the prerogatives of the House.

She's taking the position that ALL House computers are immune from search under the Constitution, and of course it's understandable why she has to take that position.

[riqster]

10. She needs to say so then, loudly and clearly.

[Stewie]

51. She probably did say so loudly and clearly

But that doesn't make for as interesting a news story as just "Pelosi stops investigation."

[Jackpine Radical]

11. For all the crummy things Nancy has said & done & not done,

I stand with her on this one.

Bad precedent. Let the Fibbies nail him some other way. This is too dangerous a precedent.

[FREEWILL56]

12. I can see and understand that for an active member of congress,

but not one that isn't there anymore. Does this echo like executive privilege when it isn't supposed to apply? Gee, can Pelosi do anything more for the republicans?

[harmonicon]

16. exactly

If this were a sitting congressman, I can see her position being valid, but now? I don't think so.

[Mithreal]

18. agree. I called her office, no comment.

[harmonicon]

19. that was your second mistake

your first mistake was thinking she might take the opinion of US citizens into consideration - I'm past just being upset about wasted breath on these people.... I'm now upset even over the wasted energy used when my neurons fire as I get angry about this shit.

[Mithreal]

24. I gotta believe if enough people raise their voices

we will be heard. Despair is their ally, not mine.

[harmonicon]

31. I admire you

I've given up.

[Mithreal]

33. Don't admire me. I get very saddened by all that's going on.

Rest up, then get back in the fight : )

[leftchick]

26. can she do any more?

you betcha! And we will see.

[DCKit]

27. But it IS valid. Just because he's no longer there...

doesn't mean that sensitive Congressional information doesn't still reside on the HDD. However, that doesn't mean Congress couldn't hire or provide someone to scrub the political info off the HDD and provide the rest to the police - even if they burned it to a CD or DVD to prevent forensic examination of any sensitive data that might be recoverable from the HDD.

As disgusting as y'all find this, the U.S. is one of the most sexually repressed countries in the world with some of the highest ages of consent for sexual activity (13 in Spain). Granted, Foley's position as a Congressman provided him additional and undue advantage, but, considering what even younger kids are exposed to in the MSM, on MTV, etc..., do we really need to police the sexual activities of sixteen and seventeen year old boys? They aren't innocent of what people do in bed and should be mature enough to say "yes" or "no" on their own account to any unsolicited sexual advances.

A friend of mine once asked me why creepy older guys kept hitting on us, so I told him "eventually, someone is going to say "yes"." Is it the fact that Foley is gay that causes so much hysteria in this case? Because I'm just not seeing it in cases involving heterosexual encounters with teenagers. It seems to be all about "Teh Gays." Again. The only thing that's even come close in recent memory is the three or four hot blonde teachers and their thirteen year old students, and not one of those turned into this kind of crusade.

[FREEWILL56]

50. This thread really isn't about Foley as much as it is about Pelosi.

You have to be able to envision the whole irony of it all as this is a lawmaker (Foley) that had commited a crime of morality from a party of those that claim to be moral while being protected by the opposing party's speaker of the house and it seems to be her number 1 priority there is protecting the offending party's wrongdoings time after time after her badmouthing that party's wrong doings to get elected in the first place. HYPOCRITE!

[DCKit]

54. Point taken and agreed. Pelosi isn't doing us any favors. n/t

[flasoapbox]

13. Hmmmmm....

That's all I'm saying for now.

[Ecumenist]

14. Why the fuck not??!!

Okay, this heifer is involved with these creeps, there's nothing else that explains it.

[Kolesar]

30. the Speech or Debate Clause of the Constitution

it's in the o/p

[Imagevision]

15. Pelosi has clearly displayed her accomplisments, now a replacement should be considered.

As in business, either perform satisfactorily or face the consequences of being replaced ASAP!
Ms. Pelosi is not impressive whatsoever!

[harmonicon]

17. you're not impressed?

I actually have been quite impressed with the utter contempt she seems to have for the american people on a whole. I didn't expect her to be perfect, but to be capable of such an incredibly piss poor job is very impressive.

[Pale Blue Dot]

20. You're right. She's truly risen above my wildest expectations. nt

[Flatline]

45. Pelosi = Sell out n/t

[wintersoulja]

21. and Justice for all.

sex with children is pretty much a tradition in those parts.
Foley's lucky he didnt end up in jail getting suicided like the Justice Department fella who flew after a 5 year old. What tales he coulda told...

[Mithreal]

22. I am so disgusted with Congresswoman Pelosi

On http://www.house.gov/pelosi/ it says under NEXT ON THE AGENDA:
Provide more support to local police and strengthen oversight of Internet child safety.

I know she is doing a great job providing support for local law enforcement just ask FDLE.

Who were the Democrats on the Ethics committee that knew about Foley's excesses long before it blew up in the news?

The government Youth Opportunities pages should be offering "Have sex with a congressman."

Accountability?

[Botany]

23. Jan. 2009 we need a new speaker

Freaking useless .... just useless.

[Kolesar]

29. She's in over her head, but this rabid anti-Pelosi raving gets to be too much

This thread has a few examples.

I am fed up and sick and tired of these three sentence scathing rants against her. Were the purpose to be to demoralize Democrats on the internet, I would not be surprised.

[Botany]

34. no two people deserve impeachment more than bush & Cheney

but Nancy hasn't done shit ..... except to "talk about" stopping the war but
nothing has happened.

If she had the guts she needs to hold open and public hearings and let the
repugs defend the indefensible.

[Kolesar]

36. The public would be real damned surprised if impeachment commenced

Because I am sure there is not a groundswell of support for impeachment. Those who hate bush are not a mirror of the bat shit crazy RW extremists who tried to overturn the election of the last president.

[superconnected]

39. If we impeached her, we may be able to get someone in who

would try to impeach bush and cheney.

With her in the way, we don't stand a chance.

[Mithreal]

35. Demoralizing, maybe, but also it is a call to get active

[Kolesar]

37. or watch tv...eom

[superconnected]

38. Uh, what good is pelosi if she keeps selling out our ideals?

Do you support her with the hopes that she'll do everything bush wants?

I think the rest of us thought she was going to at least try to make the junta accountable, and try to make a difference in the iraq war.

She's in too HIGH of a position to be in over-her-head. She needs to quit if that is the case. We need someone competent.

I think she sold us out.

Either way, she should step down. Whether its feebleness or corruption doesn't mater. She isn't capable of doing the job we have here there for, whether thats intentional or not.

[Pacifist Patriot]

28. I don't see why a compromise couldn't be reached.

I agree with Speaker Pelosi that this is not a precedent that needs to be set. On the other hand, there is no reason a House employee couldn't review the files first to ascertain if anything classified would be compromised by turning the files over to the Florida law enforcement.

[Ian David]

32. Who knows what the "investigators" would REALLY do with the computers?

Investigate... or call Geek Squad to do a seven-level wipe?

[IndianaGreen]

40. I wonder if Pelosi has some dirt on herself she wants to hide

She put impeachment off the table to cover up the fact that she was complicit in rendition and torture, so why not assume she has some sex scandal she is trying to hide.

Pelosi must be ousted as Speaker.

[natrat]

41. omg what would you expect, she is a fucking crook as she demonstrates over and over

[The Croquist]

43. Article. I, Section. 6. Clause 1:

Article. I, Section. 6. Clause 1:
The Senators and Representatives shall receive a Compensation for their Services, to be
ascertained by Law, and paid out of the Treasury of the United States. (See Note 6) They shall in all
Cases, except Treason, Felony and Breach of the Peace, beprivileged from Arrest during their
Attendance at the Session of their respective Houses, and in going to and returning from the same;
and for any Speech or Debate in either House, they shall not be questioned in any other Place.

If this is what she is talking about I don't see how it is applicable. He is no longer in the House. To argue that you receive a blank check for anything you do while a member of Congress is absurd.

[Lorien]

53. Government transperancy

something we don't have. Not a shred. And now they seek to cover up crimes once they are no longer members of Congress? Absurd.

[deacon]

44. Denny Pelosi strikes again. She's the pits. n/t

[earth mom]

46. Pelosi is a rethuglican TOOL. Why is anyone surprised by this?

:puke:

[Kolesar]

47. Tool

Give me a break

[earth mom]

49. Wake up and smell the corruption. nt

[Kolesar]

48. I would not want the bush FBI to raid a Democratic Congressman's office either

Ask William Jefferson.