Move over, Larry Craig. Gangway, David Vitter.
Joey DiFatta - a St. Bernard Parish councilman and (until today) a candidate for the Louisiana State Senate - has been caught tappin' toes in a mall bathroom just outside New Orleans.
Twice.
Oh, and both times were just terrible misunderstandings.
The Times-Picayune frontpages DiFatta's story on Friday morning:
St. Bernard Parish Councilman Joey DiFatta, who on Thursday withdrew from the 1st Senate District campaign, has been stopped twice since 1996 for suspicion of engaging in lewd behavior in public restrooms in Jefferson Parish, records obtained by The Times-Picayune show.
DiFatta, 53, acknowledged that reports he had been stopped are true, but he denied any wrongdoing in both cases. He said he was not prosecuted in either case and has no arrest record.
"If I had done something wrong, I would have been arrested," DiFatta said Thursday afternoon. "I was not. I will deny that I was involved in any activity of that nature."
Earlier Thursday, DiFatta called reporters to announce that he planned to withdraw from the Senate race. He said he has been having chest pains for a few weeks, and elevated enzyme levels indicate he might have had a minor heart attack in the past few days. As a result, his doctor advised him to slow down and make some changes in his life.
No word on what those changes will be, but you know the rest of the story by now:
Married, two sons, three grandchildren
Member, Republican State Central Committee (1996-2004)
The DiFatta plan: "Defend our conservative values from attacks by extreme liberal groups"
You do that, Joey.