more proof of repug coverup of Foleygate

Page sponsor questioned by House panel

WASHINGTON - A Louisiana congressman and sponsor of a page who later received questionable e-mails from ex-Rep. Mark Foley went before a House ethics panel Wednesday to explain how his office handled the teen's complaint last fall.

GOP Rep. Rodney Alexander appeared Wednesday morning and said he would address reporters after testifying. He says that after he and his staff learned of the e-mails to the former page, his aides contacted the office of House Speaker Dennis Hastert R-Ill., for advice on what to do about communications the boy's family thought were inappropriate.

Alexander's account — that the matter was passed on to more senior House members and top staff — has not been challenged. And his testimony is a small piece of a more confusing puzzle that puts Hastert and his aides at odds with the accounts of other top GOP lawmakers and their aides.

---