Ah, Memories....

Not even having to resign in deep disgrace is enough to keep Bob Livingston from being treated as an honored and trustworthy commentator. Now, some of you who actually remember 1998 are right now scratching your heads and saying: "Hmmmm, Livingston. Didn’t Livingston cut and run from office to 'spend more time with his family'"? Why, yes, yes, he did:

The Irish Times has learned that Mr Livingston became aware that Mr Flynt had in his possession audiotapes of sexually explicit telephone conversations between Mr Livingston and a woman. It was the nature of the sexual talk that was so disturbing, said this source. It was clearly a sexual relationship of a sado-masochistic or dominant-submissive nature. At one point in the conversation, Mr Livingston asks the woman a question to the effect, can’t I be the victim next time? (The precise wording of the question could not be confirmed.) What was clear was that Mr Livingston was clearly interested in playing a sexually submissive role. Mr Flynt, for the record, did not wish to disclose the specific nature of the evidence he has against Mr Livingston. “It was much more than he said in his initial statement. He knew our investigation was under way.” With a sly smile, Mr Flynt looked into the camera at CNN and said: “Let’s say I understand why he resigned. I’m happy if our efforts had anything to do with it.”

See, Livingston was supposed to be Newt’s replacement as House Speaker when Newt was made to take the fall for the GOP’s badly-backfired obsession with Clinton’s genitals in 1998. But it turned out that Livingston, just like pretty much every other prominent GOP Clinton attacker, had a personal life that made Bill’s look like that of a Trappist monk. Oh, for the days when everyone had jobs and even pensions, and even the GOP's obsession with Clinton's penis wasn't enough to keep him from keeping a weather eye on Osama bin Laden.