You know things are getting bad for Anthony Weiner when even Mark Foley thinks he should step down. Foley gave his first national television interview to Fox News' Sean Hannity last night, and though it was scheduled long before Weinergate, obviously the issue popped up.
"You cannot fix your problem. Whatever it is that's troubling him. Beautiful wife, wonderful family, a great constituency. Obviously wasn't enough for either one of us. He's not going to get better going back into the building and hope people give him a pass," Foley said.
Foley resigned in 2006 after it came to light that he had sent several sexually charged text messages, instant messages, and emails to underage male pages, and the scandal grew to ensnare Republican leaders who were previously aware of the accusations.
Although Weiner is married, his online chats did not involve any underage women, and it doesn't appear that any Democratic leaders knew about his actions. Foley connected his own behavior to alcohol abuse, while it seems Weiner has no substance abuse problems.
But that didn't stop Foley from linking the two scandals.
"I know what he's going through from the feeling of remorse, because there's no question you feel terrible," the former Florida congressman said.
"All I know is what I did when I looked in the mirror," he continued. "I first considered my family, my community, my staff, and the Congress I loved. Resignation was the only option. I'm not suggesting had I waited 24 hours, leadership would have given me a pass. I had to step out of the process. I had to get help. And I did. And I recovered from that help. But while I was in the cauldron, I would have never fixed my problem. I would have never fixed what was fundamentally wrong with me."
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