The bill of particulars is lengthy. Consider the Mark Foley page scandal. An explosion in questionable “earmarking” for pet legislative projects. The neutering of an already weak ethics process. Hardball tactics on the House floor. A weakening of committee chairmen accompanied by heightened pressure on them to leverage legislative clout to raise campaign money. Undue deference to the executive branch. Personal enrichment.
Take those together with the shocking revelations of sexual abuse of youths placed in the trust of Mr. Hastert, a popular and successful coach, and he emerges as a deeply flawed figure who contributed significantly to the dysfunction that defines Congress today. Even his namesake Hastert rule — the informal standard that no legislation should be brought to a vote without the support of a majority of the majority — has come to be seen as a structural barrier to compromise.
.. It was a sex scandal that put Mr. Hastert into the top House job in the first place. Robert Livingston, a Louisiana Republican in line to replace Newt Gingrich, was forced to step aside after accusations of marital infidelity as the House impeached President Bill Clinton in 1998.
.. “At times, he seemed to believe he worked for the vice president,” Mr. Lilly wrote
.. one of the most egregious acts by Mr. Hastert was steering a 2005 highway bill to passage after he made certain that it contained a new Illinois road called the Prairie Parkway close to land Mr. Hastert had secretly purchased through trusts. A series of profitable real estate deals, along with a flourishing lobbying practice after he left the speakership, helped Mr. Hastert’s net worth grow substantially and explained how he had millions to pay to his high school victim.