CLYBURN STATEMENT ON INVESTIGATION OF FOLEY AND REPUBLICAN HOUSE LEADERSHIP

WASHINGTON, DC—House Democratic Caucus Chairman James E. Clyburn today released the following statement in response to the behavior of Congressman Foley and the House Republican Leadership:

"Each semester, students from all over the country are nominated by their congressmen to come to the nation’s capital and work and study as Congressional Pages. Their parents put these children in our trust for this unique and exciting experience. It disturbs me to my core that Congressman Foley violated that trust by preying upon 16 and 17-year-old boys in the Page Program.

"Nearly a year ago, a former page was distressed enough by a series of e-mail exchanges with Congressman Foley that he reached out for help from the office of the Congressman who nominated him to the program. The student was made uncomfortable. He was alarmed, and those emails contained signs meriting a full investigation by appropriate experts and authorities. Nearly a dozen Members of Congress and staff at the highest levels of the Republican leadership were notified, and instead of a proper investigation, it appears there was an attempt to cover it up.