The great danger from the moment the Foley Phallic Phantasies story broke was that it would be hijacked by the mob and used for their own purposes. We see this beginning to happen with claims that homosexuals are far more likely to prey on the young than heterosexuals (who often use guns, by the way) and now “The List.” David Corn, among others, has a copy of this list of purportedly gay Republican staffers, which may be used, as is common in Authoritarian Panics, to blame all troubles on a malific parasite hidden among them, to be exterminated at all costs.
there is a Republican strategy to find scapegoats–other than House Speaker Denny Hastert, of course–and the two leading candidates seem to be Democrats (for somehow making this scandal a scandal) and gay Republicans (for presumably protecting the page-pursuing Mark Foley). From what I can tell, some of these gay GOPers are fighting back. I cannot say too much about this without disclosing more than I should about certain individuals. But there does seem to be a conflict brewing within Republican circles between straight cons and gay GOPers. I’m wondering how nasty this will become and if it will become public. Should that occur, things could get rather ugly.