From Foleygate, signs of things to come?

A Republican cancels an apppearance with Hastert; Pelosi says GOP leaders should answer questions under oath.

Published October 4, 2006 11:27PM (EDT)

Kentucky Rep. Ron Lewis has cancelled a fundraiser he'd scheduled with Dennis Hastert, saying he wants to know more about the speaker's involvement in Foleygate before he takes the stage with him.

"I'm taking the speaker's words at face value," Lewis tells the Associated Press. "I have no reason to doubt him. But until this is cleared up, I want to know the facts. If anyone in our leadership has done anything wrong, then I will be the first in line to condemn it."

In the meantime, Ohio Rep. Deborah Pryce -- another Republican looking for some distance from the scandal -- is asking the House clerk to investigate rumors that a drunken Foley was once turned away from the congressional pages' dormitory on Capitol Hill. Pryce's spokesman says the rumor came up during a conference call for House Republicans Monday night. Florida Today says the Capitol Police have no record of any such incident involving Foley.

And from the other side of the aisle, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi says it's time for Hastert and others in the Republican leadership to start answering questions about their role in Foleygate -- and to do so under oath. "The children, their parents, the public, and our colleagues deserve answers," Pelosi says, " and those who covered up Mark Foley's behavior must be held accountable."


By Tim Grieve

Tim Grieve is a senior writer and the author of Salon's War Room blog.

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2006 Elections Nancy Pelosi D-calif. Roy Ashburn