Today Newt Gingrich told FOX News that if the Republicans investigated Foley then they would have been accused of “gay bashing” (HT TP).

This has so many levels of absurd. This also proves the point that Republicans were putting politics above child safety. So if they investigated and the case turned out to be true (as it has now), then the Republicans would have come off as the heroes and not in the mess they are today. Instead the Republicans allowed Foley to stay in office, and even worse (as Aravosis has posted), allowed him to take a page to a private dinner:

Foley then gets up in front of Shimkus and tells a special little story of how he took one male page to a private dinner in downtown Washington, DC. Put the page in his BMW and “cruised” – Foley’s word – to dinner.

And now for the kicker.

Foley told the kid he had to get permission from his mom and he had to notify the Clerk of the House, Jeff Trandahl, the Republican staffer who works for Republican Speaker of the House Denny Hastert (R-IL). You’ll also recall that Trandahl is the Clerk who joined Shimkus in 2005 to talk to Foley about the creepy email exchange with the first child who got this scandal started.

So Republican leadership KNEW that there was a problem with Foley and still allowed him to take a young male page out to dinner?!?! Everyone involved must be investigated for conspiracy now.