Since 1928 when Al Smith was defeated by Herbert Hoover, I have been an interested observer of the political scene in American politics. During the better part of four years, at the conclusion of the 1960s, I had the privilege of being a lobbyist in Washington where the scene played out, if you will, nearly at my feet. During the 80 years that I have been observing American politics, it has always been my belief that if a politician fathers a child out of wedlock and is also arrested for driving under the influence, he will resign as gracefully as possible and do so immediately. But apparently that’s how it was done when I was a younger person. In the year 2008, it appears that these rules do not necessarily apply any more.
Vito Fossella is the Representative in Congress for all of Staten Island. He also represents a small slice of Brooklyn. He is a Republican, the party that stands square and fair for family values.
Fossella has served in Congress since 1997, when he was designated by Guy Molinari as the candidate to succeed his daughter. For many years, Molinari had represented Staten Island in Congress and when he grew tired of that job, he was able to pass it to his daughter Susan. She left the job in 1997, which made the way clear for Vito Fossella to take over.
Vito is now about 43 years of age and is married to a woman named Mary Pat. The facts suggest that Mary Pat is not only trusting beyond belief but similarly is naïve starting with day one. There are three young Fossella children living on Staten Island with their mother and occasionally with their father, apparently. From what must be gathered from his duties as a Representative in Congress, Vito must have served on committees that had something to do with the Pentagon. At this point, we must introduce Laura Fay, apparently a femme fatale who has two divorces behind her.
Laura Fay attained the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the American Air Force. I have no belief that Laura Fay ever flew a mission or had anything to do with airplanes. My best guess is that Mrs. Fay was a Washington creature who lobbied congressmen on behalf of the Air Force and of course the Pentagon. Apparently Mrs. Fay did her job exceedingly well, because she and Vito became close companions. This companionship led to a pregnancy and a young daughter who is now three years old.
From all that can be learned, Congressman Fossella never published his address while he was in Washington. Did he sleep on a park bench? Or did he sleep in the rear seat of the automobile provided him by this government? For the ten years that he has been in Congress or most of those ten years, Vito’s address in Washington was unknown. Roll Call, a publication having to do almost exclusively with developments on Capitol Hill, Washington, says that he is the only one of 535 members of Congress who enjoyed the anonymity of having no home address while he served in the nation’s capital.
Earlier this month, George W. Bush welcomed the members of the New York Giants football team for their victory in the Super Bowl, which was played three months earlier. In those situations, it is normal for a congressman to provide a dinner for some of the people attending the presentation with Mr. Bush. Apparently Mr. Fossella had enough to drink at his party for part of the New York delegation and then may have had a little more afterwards. In any case, in Alexandria, Virginia, he ran a red light and the cops smelled liquor on his breath and arrested him for drunk driving. The cops put him in jail and he was rescued by none other than Laura Fay who posted his $2,500 bond to spring him. It was at this point that, when reporters asked who Laura Fay might be, the whole story broke.
Shortly after the story broke, it was alleged that Mary Pat had told Vito that he was no longer welcome at their residence, so he took an apartment over his mother’s garage elsewhere on Staten Island. For the past three weeks or so, Vito has kept his head down and has made no public appearances until the weekend of May 17. There was a Conservative dinner on Friday night of this past week, where Vito showed up after the drinks had been served and made no speeches but shook hands all around. Curiously, Vito is not regarded as a pariah, apparently, even though the Conservative Party on Staten Island seems to treasure what some politicians call “family values” issues.
On top of making his appearance, Vito intimated to friends that he fully intends to run for another term in this fall’s election. Guy Molinari is the “stud duck” of Staten Island politics, and he says that he will support Vito in his quest for another term, but he does not do so with great enthusiasm. If I were a Democrat running for a congressional seat, I would move my residence to Staten Island with the hope that Vito would not withdraw his offer to run this fall. His conduct makes him absolutely radioactive but the Conservatives, the “values people,” seem to think that Vito is their candidate and they are stuck with him.
For my part as an observer of the American political scene for 80 years, I would suggest that Vito’s behavior is nothing other than chutzpah in the extreme. There are three innocent children on Staten Island and one innocent child in Alexandria, and a naïve and innocent wife on Staten Island also. Whether Laura Fay is innocent or not, I decline to comment. But that Vito will, if everything goes well for him, return to Congress, where he will vote against every measure having to do with providing benefits for gay Americans. He will also support Bush’s veto of the stem cell research plan and he will cheer whenever he sees the sainted Dick Cheney hove into view. Clearly, things have changed on the American political scene, and certainly not for the better. If Vito’s chutzpah actually leads him to become a candidate for another congressional term, the likes of Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and George Washington will weep endlessly.
Postscript:
When the new week broke after the dinner described earlier, it is obvious that the conservatives had second thoughts. Someone must have told Vito that his candidacy for a new term would give that congressional seat to Democrats. In effect, the Republican Party disowned Vito even though the rejection came much later than it should have. Vito now says that he will not seek a new term.
Vito also says that he will serve out the remainder of his term until January, 2009, where he will proudly cast his votes for conservative causes along with Senator Vitter of Louisiana and Senator Craig of Idaho. Vitter, you may recall, was a patron of a notorious call girl ring in Washington while Craig, who is known for his “wide stance” when using the bathroom is contending with charges that he is a gay man. It must be assumed that Vitter and Craig will welcome Vito into their midst with open arms because in recent months, they have shared a sense of great loneliness.
E. E. CARR
May 19, 2008
Essay 315
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Kevin’s commentary: It’s like Rob Ford seeking re-election. Why oh why?
Also, I forgot how good of a year 2008 was for scandals. People just went wild.