VITO FOSSELLA LOSING HIS SEAT IN CONGRESS FOR ALL THE WRONG REASONS

I always thought it would take a little 2010 redraw of the Brooklyn part of Vito Fossella's mostly Staten Island-based congressional district-- pushing the Brooklyn section further east towards heavily Democratic Coney Island and Brighton Beach-- to get rid of one of the last Bush rubber stamps in the New York congressional delegation. However, the aftermath of a seemingly innocuous drunk driving arrest seems to be spelling curtains for the reactionary legislator. Fossella is becoming a household name in his own district and causing some residents to laugh and others to feel ashamed and embarrassed. Neither is especially good for what once appeared to be a likely re-election-- especially if it causes some somnolent constituents to start looking into his ultra right-wing and out-of-touch voting record, a record that panders to the corporate interests that have financed his political career, while consistently sticking it to the workers and consumers who have voted for him-- and a record that has given Bush and Cheney blank checks on Iraq and on almost every domestic issue that has made voters feel that America is on the wrong track.

Fossella was arrested last Thursday in Virginia, with a blood alcohol level of 0.17 — over twice the legal limit in the state. If found guilty, he would have to serve five days in jail, an outcome analysts said could present major political problems.

“The prospect of jail time would make it very hard for him to run again,” said Cook Political Report House analyst David Wasserman. “The difference between serving jail time and pleading down to a lesser charge makes a huge difference in Fossella’s political future.”

But Fossella’s problems don’t end there. On Monday, the New York Daily News ran a front-page story about his relationship with a “mystery woman,” Laura Fay, a retired Air Force officer who posted his bail even though Fossella’s chief of staff lives nearby.

None of this sounds too deadly, right? Dig a little deeper and you find the probems. Fossella was abusive towards the police officers and lied to them, telling them he was going to take his sick daughter to the hospital. Unless "his sick daughter" is a love child by Laura Fay, he was doing no such thing. ["Fay has a 3-year-old daughter and is a single mom. The Post quotes a 'relative' of Fay's who says the woman was 'vague' about who fathered the child.] Meanwhile, Fossella and his pal were so drunk that they were kicked out of a bar after the friend passed out. Neither was capable of driving.

I was just pondering something in Arianna Huffington's new book, Right Is Wrong, a quote from paradoxical English writer G.K. Chesterton: "If there is one thing worse than the modern weakening of major morals, it is the modern strengthening of minor morals." Fossella is guilty of both but it is less likely he will be defeated for screaming about supporting  the troops while almost always voting against the well-being of active duty military personnel and veterans. Instead-- the way Al Capone went to jail for income tax evasion instead of murder-- Fossella may well be forced out of Congress for failing "a sobriety test by reciting the alphabet wrong, swaying while standing on one leg and stumbling while trying to walk a straight line." Oh, and because "Susan Del Percio, a crisis management consultant hired after the arrest, refused to answer 'yes' or 'no' when asked if Fossella fathered Fay's daughter."

Friends in DC have been telling me all morning that the die is cast and it's "bye-bye, Vito" time in Washington. And this afternoon's Washington Post seems to reflect all that chatter.

GOP political insiders say Fossella, whose blood-alcohol content was more than twice the legal limit when he was busted at 12:15 a.m. last Thursday, stands little chance of running for reelection at this point, and their Democratic counterparts agree. Buzz on the Hill and around town Wednesday was that Fossella would be announcing sooner rather than later that he won't seek another term in what has quickly become a hotly contested seat for embattled Republicans. Fossella was not voting in the House Wednesday.

According to May 1 police report, a copy of which was obtained by the Sleuth, Fossella told police he was on his way to pick up his sick daughter at her home in Alexandria and take her to the hospital. But the next day at a news conference, Fossella said he was driving to the suburbs in the wee hours of the morning to see friends.

Fossella was specific with the arresting officer about where he was headed. He gave a street name where he said he was picking up his daughter. That street, it turns out, is the same street where retired Lt. Col. Laura Fay lives with her three-year-old daughter. Fay, according to the New York Daily News, picked up Fossella from the police station.

...GOP aides speaking on the condition of anonymity said they expected Fossella would announce imminently that he won't seek reelection.

UPDATE: VITO'S ADMITS HE'S THE DADDY

So people have more than one family in places other than Utah and Texas! Here's Fossella's press release he sent out a few minutes ago:

“I have had a relationship with Laura Fay, with whom I have a three year old daughter.

"My personal failings and imperfections have caused enormous pain to the people I love and I am truly sorry.

"While I understand that there will be many questions, including those about my political future, making any political decisions right now are furthest from my mind.

“Over the coming weeks and months, I will to continue to do my job and I will work hard to heal the deep wounds I have caused.”

When we were hiking this morning, I told my friend Cynthia about Fossella's foibles. "Is he gay too?" she asked. And then inquired if he was attending two churches.