Sex, Lies and Republicans

Does the Republican Party have a zipper problem?

And if so, how much will voters care?

Now that Larry Flynt has claimed David Vitter as his latest quarry, there's plenty of chatter about whether one too many family-values champions of the GOP has been caught not quite walking the walk.

Let's stipulate right up front: There's been no shortage of Democratic politicians caught doing something with women not their wives. Bill Clinton, ah, comes to mind. So does his HUD secretary, former San Antonio mayor Henry Cisneros. So does the former West Virginia governor, Bob Wise, and the former Kentucky governor, Paul Patton, whose gal pal was cited for nursing home violations after they broke up. And Gary Hart. And Jesse Jackson. And on and on, back to Jack Kennedy.

But the Mark Foley scandal put the hypocrisy question on full display. The ex-congressman was, you may recall, co-chair of the caucus on exploited children even as he was sending nasty IMs to young men in the House page program. Newt, of course, was doing it with a House aide while demanding Clinton's impeachment over Monica. And the reason that Hustler was happy to out Vitter for playing speed-dial with the D.C. Madam's operation is that the Republican senator from Louisiana was an outspoken proponent of the sanctity of marriage and other moral causes. (Mrs. Vitter's seven-year-old promise to turn into Lorena Bobbitt if her husband strayed adding a certain cutting edge to the tale.)

But does Flynt's goal of exposing political hypocrites--along the way, back in '99, he cost speaker-to-be Bob Livingston his House seat--mean that only conservative Republicans are targeted, and liberal Democrats get a pass?

As we ponder that question, Vitter's problems may go beyond Deborah Jeane Palfrey. The New Orleans Times Picayune has this:

"Senator David Vitter visited a Canal Street brothel several times beginning in the mid-1990s, paying $300 per hour for services at the bordello after he met the madam at a fishing rodeo that included prostitutes and other politicians, according to Jeanette Maier, the 'Canal Street Madam' whose operation was shut down by a federal investigators in 2001.

"After they met, Maier said Vitter became a customer at the Mid-City brothel. He made several visits, she said, but had stopped coming before federal agents raided the brothel.

"Maier's attorney, Vinny Mosca, upon learning of his client's allegation on Tuesday, said he had never known Vitter to visit the brothel or heard Maier mention his name."

By the way, Hustler now says Vitter called the escort service three times in 2000 and 2001.

At the Politico, David Paul Kuhn and John Harris connect the dots to the GOP's White House field: