WASHINGTON, DC -- Congressman Marty Meehan (D-MA) released the following statement today condemning former Congressman Mark Foley for his behavior and called on the House Ethics Committee and the FBI to investigate the possiblility of a cover up by the Republican House leadership.
"The actions of former Congressman Mark Foley were reprehensible. Each year, students from all over America come to serve their country as Congressional pages. Just last spring I sponsored a high-school student from my district as a page. We must institute stronger safe guards, including better support and counseling services, to ensure the safety and well being of our pages.
"We also need new leadership in the House of Representatives. The current Republican leadership, which knew of at least one inappropriate email exchange between Congressman Foley and a House page for almost a year, tried to hide the scandal instead of aggressively pursuing an investigation into the matter."
"I support an immediate investigation by the House Ethics Committee and the FBI into Mr. Foley, as well as the cover up by the Republican leadership. It is too early to tell what the political fall out will be from this growing scandal. At its heart, this scandal is not about politics, it is about protecting our young people who serve in the nation's Capitol."
