That plan involves:
Closer adult supervision
More contact between pages and congresspeople
A hotline where pages can call and tell a congressman that another congressman has touched them.
My thoughts:
Either Denny Hastert is just an absurdly stupid man, or the page service has involved a LOT more sexual abuse than we know about. Because those are the steps I would take if my goal were to make sure that more pages were abused and that it were covered up.
1) Close adult supervision means more control. Who are the adults who will be supervising? People loyal to the page program and congress. Sure the intent is to make sure pages don't have time to go out and be abused, but it also means pages can't get to the cops or the press as easily without going through their adult "supervisors." Supervision is NOT some benevolent tool to protect people. You know who else is closely supervised? An inmate.
2) Having the page hotline connect them to a congressperson is just ABSURD. "If you have a problem with a member of the Boys club, please report it to Boys club."
3) Where are the parents? Why not bring them in?
Hastert could have done many things to show he actually cared about the pages. Open hearings, a hotline run by an independent Child Services agency. An independent investigator like they used when Bill Clinton was having sex with an adult.
My guess as to why he didn't?
The page service has probably operated like a young flesh buffet for many members of congress for many years and they really don't want that dirty laundry being aired. Good luck with that folks. Even 15 years olds don't need 1-800 numbers to call CNN.
