GOP Rep. Mark Souder of Indiana -- the leading advocate for abstinence education in Congress -- will resign after an affair with one of his female staffers became public. From his statement of resignation (caps in the original, emphasis mine):
IT IS WITH GREAT REGRET I ANNOUNCE THAT I AM RESIGNING FROM THE US HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, AS WELL AS RESIGNING AS THE REPUBLICAN NOMINEE FOR CONGRESS IN THIS FALL’S ELECTION. ... IT HAS BEEN ALL CONSUMING FOR ME TO DO THIS JOB WELL, ESPECIALLY IN A DISTRICT WITH COSTLY, COMPETITIVE ELECTIONS EVERY TWO YEARS I DO NOT HAVE ANY SORT OF "NORMAL" LIFE - FOR FAMILY, FOR FRIENDS, FOR CHURCH, FOR COMMUNITY.TO SERVE HAS BEEN A BLESSING AND A RESPONSIBILITY GIVEN FROM GOD.I WISH I COULD HAVE BEEN A BETTER EXAMPLE. I SINNED AGAINST GOD, MY WIFE AND MY FAMILY BY HAVING A MUTUAL RELATIONSHIP WITH A PART-TIME MEMBER OF MY STAFF.
Well, isn't that nice that it was "mutual"? (And isn't it interesting that he would point that out? I wonder why.) Souder continues:
IN THE POISONOUS ENVIRONMENT OF WASHINGTON DC, ANY PERSONAL FAILING IS SEIZED UPON, OFTEN TWISTED, FOR POLITICAL GAIN. I AM RESIGNING RATHER THAN TO PUT MY FAMILY THROUGH THAT PAINFUL, DRAWN-OUT PROCESS.
Yes, Mark. Washington, DC is to blame. For everything. Even for your resignation. Yup.
Of course this wouldn't be a Republican sex scandal if Mark Souder weren't a hard core family values advocate. You know, the kind who preaches abstinence:
(Update, 7:55AM: Tracy Jackson, the female staffer who interviewed Souder in this video, was his mistress.)
Anyhoo...back to the politics. According to Chris Cilliza and Aaron Blake at The Fix:
The revelations regarding Souder come two weeks after he survived a serious primary challenge from car dealer Bob Thomas who spent considerable sums of his own money on the race. Souder won the primary with less than 50 percent of the vote.
Although Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels could call for a special election to fill the seat before November's election, Cillizza and Blake say GOP sources think that won't happen. Republicans must pick a replacement nominee within 30 days. The Democratic nominee is Tom Hayhurst, who took 46% against Souder in 2006.
Join the discussion in Addison's recommended diary, Indiana Representative Mark Souder (R) to Resign Over Affair.
Update II by kos: Anyone know which gay marriage destroyed Souder's traditional straight marriage?
