Jim Kolbe, R-Ariz., an openly gay Republican, almost emerged from the Foley scandal a hero. It was said he mentored pages so that they felt comfortable with him, and that he personally confronted Foley years ago when he heard of inappropriate e-mails.

I was a little suspicious when I read that he “once invited four former pages to make use of his Washington home while he was out of town,” however. Obviously nothing sexual can happen while he’s not there, but how old were the pages by this point, and is that an appropriate favor to do a young person? Didn’t he know what young people are like when they have a house to themselves?

It seems the U.S. attorney in Arizona shares my concerns. There is a preliminary investigation into a 1996 camping trip between Kolbe and two male former pages. Even if nothing happened, what kind of moron takes two young people he’s not related to (especially two young people consistent with his stated sexual preference) on a camping trip? It’s just asking for trouble, and this news casts serious doubts on Kolbe’s judgment.

Robert VerBruggen blogs at http://robertsrationale.blogspot.com.

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