March 5, 2010

And another one bites the dust

A lot of Democrats are either not running for re-election or are stepping down. From FOX News:
Facing Misconduct Allegations, Massa to Resign
Facing "allegations of misconduct" that reportedly involve sexual harassment against a male staffer, freshman Rep. Eric Massa is resigning Monday.

"I own his reality," the New York Democrat said in a statement, admitting to using language that "might make a chief petty officer feel uncomfortable."

Massa went on to call Washington an "incredibly toxic atmosphere" and said the ethics committee probe "would tear my family and my staff apart."

The House ethics panel is reviewing a complaint by a male staffer who reportedly felt uncomfortable in a situation with Massa that had sexual overtones.

Massa announced Wednesday he would retire at the end of his term because of a recurrence of non-Hodgkins lymphoma, first diagnosed in 1996. He also addressed head-on the harassment allegations.

"The allegations are totally false. I am a salty old sailor," Massa, a former Navy officer, said at a news conference. "These are blogs that are saying that I am leaving because of charges of harassing my staff. Do and have I used salty language? Yes, and I have tried to do better."

He called the blogs "a symptom of the problem in this city."
Emphasis mine -- blogs are a symptom of the problem in this city Talk about clueless ninny -- blogs are not a symptom; they are the messenger, not the illness. Blogs open the window and shine the light onto the truth or the allegations. If a blog posts an allegation, other blogs will do the fact checking and reveal the truth. Blogs as a population are inherently truthful and self-correcting. Good riddance to bad trsh... Posted by DaveH at March 5, 2010 1:21 PM