FBI Knew in July About Foley E-Mails to Teen

[cal04]

Tuesday, October 3, 2006; Page A11
Meanwhile, Private Handling of Matter by a Few House Republicans Receives Bipartisan Criticism

The FBI acknowledged yesterday that it did not begin an investigation in late July after receiving copies of e-mails sent in 2005 by then-Rep. Mark Foley (R-Fla.) to a Louisiana teenager -- messages that troubled the boy's parents.

Key House Republicans learned of the e-mails in 2005 and chose to deal with Foley privately, warning him to cease contact with the 16-year-old former House page. Top aides to Speaker J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) did not inform him about the incident, Hastert said yesterday, and he defended their actions in a Capitol Hill news conference.

But the GOP's handling of the Foley matter is rocking the party after it was revealed last week that Foley had sent far more sexually explicit electronic messages to underage former pages in 2003 and 2004.

Many Democrats and some Republicans sharply criticized the decision by key House GOP members to handle the matter of the Louisiana e-mails so quietly that only one of the three lawmakers who oversee the page program knew anything about it. The other two -- one Democrat, one Republican -- expressed anger yesterday that they had been kept in the dark.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/02/AR2006100200333.html

[NVMojo]

1. wtf?

[corporatemedia]

2. wow!

[UpInArms]

3. this one will resonate will every parent

these perverts have nothing to do with taking care of anything but their own checking and savings accounts.

Not one single person in this country can think they represent anything but their own interests.

They don't care if they destroy children, the country or anything and everything else as long as they can act like they are important.

The only thing these pieces of shit are - are pieces of shit.

[Sydnie]

4. messages that troubled the boy's parents.?????

I thought the parents wanted to drop the whole subject? Which is it? :shrug:

Did the parents bring them to the FBI?

[Toucano]

5. Heads must roll at the FBI

This is a big hit to their credibility.

[hootinholler]

11. Not as big a hit an Sibel Edmonds should be! n/t

[peacetalksforall]

6. I think this just got ratcheted up to the WH. You know that this is a top

down outfit - the strategy, tactics, and talking points come fromt the WH. Some through Rove, some through Cheney. Didn't Rove kinda move from his former role to RNC campaign duties in July? Did they lose out on secrecy because Rove wasn't there or because he couldn't put the lid on it.

Hastert doesn't operate independently of the WH.

If directions went out to Hastert saying they could get away with this and that they must get away with it until after the election and the WH instructions was to keep it quiet at all costs and if Foley and/or others approached ABC to quiet them (pay them off?) - then we have to reach higher for blame and the rule of law. RIght?

Yes, this looks like the law is definitely involved and even they stalled and betrayed the citizens?

Is martial law far behind? Their precious seats in Congress? Especially the House of Representatives, where impeachments originate.

Are they going to deflect it all with a move on Venezuela or Cuba or both?

[kestrel91316]

9. Did the FBI higher-ups ORDER an investigation? Or did they OBSTRUCT

one?

Enquiring minds do SOOOOO want to know..............

[flyarm]

7. if republicans could not protect children among them ..how could anyone

think that they can protect americans from terrorist attacks??

if the republican leadership..could not protect a small number of children ..in their care..how the fuck can they protect a nation??????

these bastards need to be replaced immediately..should be the dem talking points!

they failed on 9/11 to protect this nation
they failed by allowing pissy pants to lie us intoa war

they have failed in oversight of war
they failed getting Bin Laden
they failed the economy and have put us in horrible debt

they failed in Katrina..

now they failed to protect children in their midst..they failed the children and their parents ..with a pedophile

so tell me how can we trust these people with national security??????

any body of government that fails to protect children ..has no business leading!

fly

[kestrel91316]

8. Why do I think I am smelling a whiff of OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE

in this scenario???? Is it just me???

[The Count]

10. Modified rule for GOP: three strokes, you're out

"liberal leaning" Citizens for responsibility....
geez, I thought liberals were for "if it feels good, do it" non?

[Copperred]

12. TIME TO YELL FROM THE CHURCH TOWER

.......path clear....destination Nov 7, 2006


what would G_D say?

[rodeodance]

13. FBI got emails from a "liberal-leaning group" on July 21.

.....Officials from the liberal-leaning group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington said yesterday that they received copies of the Louisiana e-mails on July 21 and turned them over to the FBI the same day. Melanie Sloan, the group's executive director, said she spoke with a special agent in the Washington field office, and she questioned yesterday why the FBI did not investigate Foley weeks ago.

An FBI official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing, said the field office concluded that the e-mails "did not rise to the level of criminal activity." The bureau announced Sunday that it would begin a preliminary investigation into Foley's more explicit electronic exchanges with teenagers.

Some House Republicans said yesterday that the FBI and House leaders erred in not considering the e-mails -- and the concern they raised among the recipient's parents -- as justification for an inquiry.

[rodeodance]

14. FBI said: "did not rise to the level of criminal activity."

An FBI official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing, said the field office concluded that the e-mails "did not rise to the level of criminal activity." The bureau announced Sunday that it would begin a preliminary investigation into Foley's more explicit electronic exchanges with teenagers.

[rodeodance]

16. parents wanted the matter kept quiet

The boy's parents approached the office of Rep. Rodney Alexander (R-La.) in late 2005, asking that Foley stop contacting their son and that the matter be kept quiet, according to House accounts.....

[SoCalDem]

17. Because in their circle, having their friends suspect that

their son "might be gay" was more troubling than the fact that a creepy 52 yr old`was hitting on him..

remember.. this came out AFTER the son went back to Louisiana, so perhaps more did happen in DC, and maybe the parents are afraid that this information would come out..

[Binka]

19. Thank You SCD! Here Is The Crux Of The Biscuit

I am willing to bet that Foley picked out kids he suspected were gay and he KNEW they wouldn't rat him out because in essence they'd be outing themselves. BASTARD. The parents should be ashamed of THEMSELVES. County Club fuckers no doubt. The IM exchange between Foley and the page was not something any young man would have continued with unless he was gay. I am not capping on homosexuality my youngest son has been honest with me about his "queerness" since he was 14, what I am going off about was the insidiousness of the predator Foley and the shallowness of the parents.

[cally]

22. We don't know the parent's motives for wanting

to keep this quiet. They could have been threatened or maybe their teen begged them to keep it quiet. Someone had to send those emails to the organization and I wouldn't doubt that it was the parents who forwarded those emails. We just don't know.

[LizW]

23. Oh, really?

That should be good news to all the Internet stalkers out there. I know of two guys in my town who were arrested for EXACTLY what Foley did. They were sending "friendly" e-mails to kids. The parents found out and told the police. Both of the guys plead guilty and now are registered as sex offenders. They can't live or work anywhere near children and have to report to police any time they move.

Why did Foley get special treatment that allowed him to keep stalking kids?

[Pachamama]

15. OMG! Melanie Sloan & the CFRAE knew about this in July and had turned the

emails over to the FBI??????

Whoa....So, the FBI then did not pursue this further???? On whose orders???

I smell obstruction of justice....this is getting stranger and stranger indeed....

[bluethruandthru]

21. I heard someone from CREW...

not sure if it was Melanie, discuss this on Air America this morning. She said they received the e-mails through someone who got them from Congressional Staffer. These were the e-mails..not the more explicit IM's. She said she was very concerned and thought they warranted more investigation. Since CREW doesn't have the ability to investigate..she turned over the information to the FBI. She was distressed to find out that they decided to do nothing. She's a former prosecutor and said even the tamer e-mails were a textbook example of predatory behavior.

[Eurobabe]

18. Are we noticing a PATTERN here?

This seems to be a weekly occurence with the GOPers. I just blasted my stupid Congresscritter: Mean Jean Schmidthead.

[fasttense]

20. Predators always pick out the most vulnerable children.

They pick out kids who are having problems communicating with their parents. They select teenagers who are afraid of their parents or their parent's disapproval. That way they guarantee the victims will remain silent. This page who released his e-mails (and is now receiving death threats from bush worshipers) must be a very brave soul. You know he was vulnerable but he fought back anyway. I hope he gets all the help he needs. He has decreased the number of future victims and stopped a pedophile from molesting others. He should be proud of standing up to the powers that be.