Poor Ol' GOP House Rep Kevin Garn Finds Himself In The Political Hotseat

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Poor ol' Davis County Republican House Majority Leader Kevin Garn. When this story broke yesterday, we thought he'd be able to sweep it under the rug, and that the controversy would simply blow over, with his contrite Thursday confession on the State House floor.

Nope. Looks like all hell is breaking loose. Here's the latest skinny on our Davis County skinny-dipping State House Rep, straight from our home town newspaper, the Standard-Examiner:

• GOP leader’s skinny-dip confession sparks outrage

This story is BIG NEWS all over the country; but we'll focus on one writeup that we liked the best. Here's the lead from a little blog called "The Frisky" (Love, Life, Stars, Style), under the title, Utah Lawmaker Admits To Hot Tub Frolic With Underaged Girl:

It’s a story ripped from an episode of “Jersey Shore”: Utah’s House Majority Leader, Rep. Kevin Garn, admitted yesterday that in 2002 he paid a woman $150,000 to keep quiet during his Congressional campaign about a 1985 incident where they sat naked in a hot tub together. Garn, who is 55 now, was 30 at the time; the girl, Cheryl Maher, who is 40 now, was 15 at the time.

At the foot of the story, the author asks this thoughtful and highly pertinent question:

Garn has said he will not resign, but he has not said he would seek re-election.
Do you think Garn should resign? Or do you think that because there was allegedly no sexual contact, and it happened 25 years ago, that Garn’s behavior is forgivable?

Looks like good fodder for a reader poll. What's your take on this, O Gentle Ones?

• Vote in our online poll!

And don't forget our lower comments section.

Update 3/13/2010 1:37 p.m.:

Dan S. has a great story and analysis on his blog, which has heretofore only dealt mainly with "science issues." Be sure to check it out:

• The Fourth Estate?

Good to see Dan S. with another " bee in his bonnet," No?