NY Mag hangs Vito Fossella's scarlet letter on Darrell Issa, regrets the error

People often get Vito Fosella (R-NY) and Darrel Issa (R-CA) confused. It's an easy mistake to make. They do look a lot alike.

This week, Issa ended up wearing Fosella's scarlet letter.

New York Magazine mistakenly photoshopped a picture of Issa, believing it to be a photograph of Fossella. Apparently, nobody noticed until Issa's press secretary saw his boss wearing a giant red "A" on the magazine's website:  

For years, Fossella and Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) have been confused for each other. But now isn't really the best time to be mistaken for Fossella, who was arrested recently on drunken-driving charges and then confessed to having a secret, long-standing extramarital affair and fathering a child with his mistress. All of which presumably was news to his not-so-secret wife and three children in Staten Island.

That led to a story on New York Magazine's Web site Tuesday titled "Vito Fossella: When Sex Overcomes Politics," which included a photo of the congressman with a big scarlet letter "A" Photoshopped around his neck.

Only the congressman in the photo wasn't Fossella. It was Fossella's doppelganger, Issa.

Issa never saw the photo of himself in the steamy online version of the story. His press secretary, Frederick Hill, called the magazine and got it pulled off the Web site in very short order. [WaPo]

With so many Republican scandals, it is getting difficult to keep track. I think we need to come up with some catchy mnemonics. In the meantime, remember: Issa's the alleged car thief. Fossella's the bigamist facing DUI charges.

Comments

[Jack]

"Drunk philandering fella? That's Vito Fossella."

Issa = In Search of Stolen Auto.

[Lindsay Beyerstein]

Good ones, Jack!

[The Phantom]

--With so many Republican scandals, it is getting difficult to keep track--

I didn't realize that Spitzer and Paterson were Republicans.

[Ben]

Paraphrased Phantom:

Look over there! A Democrat being unchaste!

[Uncle Kvetch]

I didn't realize that Spitzer and Paterson were Republicans.

Sigh. Against my better judgment...

Exactly what was the Paterson "scandal," Phantom? He revealed that he and his wife had been unfaithful to each other in the past, and the response from his constituents was a resounding "So?"

In order for there to be a "scandal," it's generally helpful if somebody actually gives a shit.

Sorry, but in recent years the Democrats got nothing on the Party of Family Values™ in this department. No wetsuits, no dildos, no diapers, no men's room stalls, no text messages to teenage boys about dick size, no hidden children. All the yes-but-what-about'ing in the world isn't going to change that. But I know that won't stop you from trying, so knock yourself out. Have fun.

[Eric Jaffa]

We paid for Vito Fossella to go to Europe with his mistress:

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Fossella and his lover took several trips together overseas on official taxpayer-funded congressional business, including to Europe in July 2003.
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[The Phantom]

I don't care at all about Paterson's actions, but we have the finger-waving "philandering" reference above, and Paterson was doing some of that too. Along with the little woman.

[Jack]

"....we have the finger-waving "philandering" reference above"....

Phantom, Phantom old boy -- in the first place I wasn't wagging a finger, I was typing with it.

In the second place I don't like philandering at all no matter who's doing whom from which party. I have regularly referred to the immediate past Chief Executive as "President Frat-B--uhhh, Clinton." And I am on record with my blog's readers -- both of them -- as thinking Spitzer's a sleazebag.

But most importantly, in the third place, my reference to philandering was made only because it fits the scansion of the statement -- it was a choice of METER not of politics. In other words, I WAS POUNCING ON THE OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE A FUNNY POEM.

Geez. Some folks on both sides of the aisle need to lighten up. Have a few drinks. Laugh. Get out more.

[Mary]

Oh you crazy kids. There yas go again... Revelling in the dirty laundry brand of politics because this time, "your side" has the fresher laundry. Take care is what I'm saying. The pendulum tends to swing back around, and it sure is hard to put these things back in the box after you're had your fun rolling in the mud because the dirty laundry, currently, belongs to the other team.

Why not adopt a consistent policy -- either these sexual affairs are relevant to how the person's doing their job, or they're not? Remember the Clinton impeachment? Maybe the best way to prevent another go-around is to learn from the past, and take care to keep your own self/side clean.

Payback's a bitch, and what stances you'all adopt now surely will come back to haunt you. Unless of course, marital/civic cleanliness is the most important reason you can think of in criticizing or lauding political leaders. In that case, bring on the Romney's of the political leadership world, eh LB? Be careful what you wish for, what games you really wanna play.

[Eric Jaffa]

Mary -

This blog covers both Republican and Democratic sex scandals.

Lindsay Beyerstein didn't write anything about Eliot Spitzer which contradicts what she wrote about Vito Fossella.

[parse]

Eric, maybe the point is that instead of covering both Republican and Democratic sex scandals, the blog should cover neither.

[Cass]

"Eric, maybe the point is that instead of covering both Republican and Democratic sex scandals, the blog should cover neither."

Maybe ABC News should cover neither; this is an individual's blog, and the subjects she chooses to address are completely up to her.

[Eric Jaffa]

Lindsay Beyerstein has devoted the right amount of space to the sex scandals of Eliot Spitzer (D-NY) and Vito Fossella (R-NY.)

In both cases, there are other issues (how did the Feds learn that Spitzer was seeing whores and will he be prosecuted; Fossella was drunk driving on his way to his mistress's house, and he brought her on taxpayer-funded trips to Europe.)

[parse]

I hope I didn't imply I thought Lindsey didn't have the right to choose which subjects she addresses. But I think the use of sexual shaming is both pervasive and destructive and it would be impressive if she chose not to participate.

I do agree that source like ABC News are far worse offenders, addicted to the use of salacious material in a way that's particularly destructive.

[Mary]

Parse has it.

Of course she has a right to contribute however she likes, but this post seemed to me more about taking pleasure in hanging out the dirty laundry than it did in addressing anything substantive that's currently high on the American public's list of priorities.

You want to feed that coverage, you'll get more of it. Take care in enjoying too much their sexcapades; she sounded much like those Puritans in the Clinton years, and look where all that got us today.

[Payday Loan Advocate]

These politicians should be more careful about their private life. With so much public scrutiny they should be careful in what they do. They should be role models not laughing stocks.
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