Second Rep. eyed in House Page scandal

Yes, it's a Republican. And although it's a decade-old incident that probably doesn't amount to much, it certainly isn't going to help the GOP in November if it crosses over from gossip to primetime news.

Overseers of the House page program this week discussed a camping trip that Rep. Jim Kolbe, R-Ariz. took with two former pages and others in 1996 — an outing now under review by the Justice Department, a congressional source said Tuesday.

The House Page Board, consisting of three lawmakers and two senior House officials, did not have any new information beyond recent news stories on the Kolbe trip. The source is familiar with the discussions but is not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. (. . .)

Kolbe took the former pages as well as staff members and National Park Service officials on a Fourth of July rafting trip in the Grand Canyon in 1996, his spokeswoman Korenna Cline said last week.

A federal law enforcement official said last week an allegation related to the trip was given to the U.S. attorney's office in Phoenix. It was not immediately clear whether it concerned any contention of improper activity by the retiring Kolbe — the only openly gay Republican in Congress.

The official described the inquiry as preliminary and as far narrower in scope than the federal investigation into Foley, R-Fla., who resigned Sept. 29 after he was confronted with sexually explicit instant messages sent to former pages.

It's probably too much to hope for, but it sure would be nice to see the Republican party hoist by their own petard after the endless gay-bashing and pandering to fundamentalists.