Says he had 'dozens' of confrontations with congressman
By KEVIN NAFF | Jun 6, 3:44 PM
Jeff Trandahl, the gay former clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives, broke his public silence on the Mark Foley scandal last week in brief remarks.
Speaking on a panel discussion related to gay rights on the first all-gay trans-Atlantic crossing aboard the Queen Mary 2, Trandahl said he had “dozens” of confrontations with Foley over the years.
Foley, a Florida Republican, resigned from Congress, came out as gay and entered a rehab facility after sexually explicit text messages he sent to male congressional pages were made public by former Human Rights Campaign employee Lane Hudson. Foley has not spoken publicly about the scandal, leading many to speculate that he is working on a book about the ordeal. The Florida Attorney General’s office and the FBI continue to consider whether to charge Foley with a crime.
As clerk from 1998 through November 2005, Trandahl had oversight authority over the page program. House investigators have said Trandahl repeatedly urged staff members of House GOP leaders to rein in Foley’s inappropriate behavior.
Trandahl told an audience of about 250 gays and lesbians at the Queen Mary 2 discussion that he confronted Foley again after learning of the text messages.
“Foley was a ticking time bomb,” Trandahl said. “His case shows how dangerous closeted gays can be for openly gay people.”
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