Pols Debate Future of Hastert

WASHINGTON, Oct. 4, 2006 — -- "So now we wait and sweat a little."

That was how a senior Republican staffer on Capitol Hill described the difficult position his party was in after the revelations that former Rep. Mark Foley had sent explicit Internet messages to pages and former pages.

Most conversations among GOP members and staffers center on the fate of House Speaker Dennis Hastert, who says he will not resign.

The staffer, who did not want to be identified, believes Hastert has done nothing that should force him to step down: "In hindsight, he could have moved more forcefully on Foley, but it's not like he found a smoking gun and did nothing."

As for reports that some senior Republicans want Hastert to remain at his post for now but announce that he will not serve as speaker if the party retains control of the House, the staffer said, "That is the worst possible solution."

"If Hastert is going to go," he said," he should go now, quickly and cleanly. But I don't think he should go."

Hastert seemed to get solid support in a joint statement from two conservatives: Republican Study Committee Chairman Rep. Mike Pence, R-Ind., and Values Action Team Chairman Joe Pitts, R-Pa.: "Speaker Dennis Hastert should not resign."

But the statement implied that the speaker and his aides should act more forcefully than they have in the past: "We trust that the House leadership will cooperate with law enforcement in this matter. We urge House Leadership to institute more comprehensive protections for House pages."

For many, President Bush's backing Tuesday of Hastert was key: "I know that he wants all the facts to come out, and he wants to ensure that these children up there on Capitol Hill are protected."

But if what the president said was important, so was what he did not say, observers note.

At no point did Bush say flatly that Hastert should remain as speaker. To some observers, the president's tempered endorsement reflects his party's nervousness.