Faux News has some bad news for Dennis Hastert.
WASHINGTON — House Republican candidates will suffer massive losses if House Speaker Dennis Hastert remains speaker until Election Day, according to internal polling data from a prominent GOP pollster, FOX News has learned.
“The data suggests Americans have bailed on the speaker,” a Republican source briefed on the polling data told FOX News. “And the difference could be between a 20-seat loss and 50-seat loss.”
Most GOP lawmakers have stood by Hastert, pending a full airing of the facts in his handling of the Mark Foley affair, in which the former Florida representative was caught exchanging salacious messages with teen pages in Congress. The new polling data, however, suggests that many voters already have made up their minds.
The GOP source told FOX News that the internal data had not been widely shared among Republican leaders, but as awareness of it spreads calculations about Hastert’s tenure may change. The source described the pollster who did the survey as “authoritative,” and said once the numbers are presented, it “could change the focus” on whether the speaker remains in power.
Notice that they are putting their choices as between “a 20-seat loss and 50-seat loss.” Either way, that would make John Conyers, Jr. the head of the Judiciary Committee and would spell doom for the GOP. But I am not going to count my votes before they are stolen.
Over at MyDD, Chris is wondering whether it would create more chaos if Hastert resigns. I think it would.
If Hastert resigns the House would probably have to reconvene to elect a new speaker. And then the real bloodletting would begin. It would also take precious campaigning time away from their many vulnerable candidates.
If this Faux News report is true, though, the Republicans may find themselves in a no-win situation. It sucks to be them.