You make some valid points, Di - particularly regarding the obvious double standard vis one party compared to the other.  The fact of the matter is, this has been going on since time immemorial; the Greeks, the Romans and other legislative bodies throughout history have suffered from this kind of cancer - whether it refers to illicit sex, graft, or any of the countless other maladies which infect bodies of "representatives".  The one constant presence we find in all these bodies, past and present, State or Federal, is the Back Bencher - ever astute, splendidly maleable and always sporting the sheen of a newly pressed shark-skin suit.

What I found most interesting about this particular incident is the dis-connect wherein we have one party, a party who knew about Foley's proclivities for years and waited till it became electorally expeditious to suddenly "reveal!! (oh my,my )" what was going on - all the while failing to recall that not ONE but TWO of it's own prominent members - Barney Frank and Gerry Studs - both had engaged in actual illicit activities with underage Congressional staff; all Foley did was engage in some really tasteless correspondence, reprehensible as that was. 

I stopped being amazed years ago.  We do in fact have a few - very few - standup individuals serving We the People in the Congress; Ted Poe from the 22nd Congressional District of Texas comes to mind, and I'm sure there are others of whom I'm unaware. 

I highly recommend "THE GILDED AGE"  by Mark Twain.  I've read it and re-read it often; doing so has reminded me that I neither have to lose my sanity nor throw something at my television whenever one of these boneheads is drooling for the cameras.