When John Edwards was doing what he was doing with Rielle Hunter, much of the conservative movement was up in arms that the man had an affair on his cancer stricken wife, had a baby with the adulteress, and then tried to cover it up. The National Enquirer, of all places, was first on the story and it took the more traditional media forever to pick it up.

That one was major. But there are plenty of minor ones too where partisans on the right scream foul, just as there are many on the left who do the same over minor stories on the right.

Today comes word that a bunch of Republican Congressmen got drunk, naked, and jumped in the Sea of Galilee. No doubt a few of them, given the religious significance, peed in the holy waters while swimming. Many conservatives are greeting it with a yawn, a “the media is out to get us,” and a “no big deal.”

Were these Democrats, we’d be out to get them. We should not surrender our intellectual honesty just because they are Republicans. The story is not a major story, but it is embarrassing and we should not be so dismissive of a group of American lawmakers behaving badly as if they were starring in a Girls Gone Wild video.

Ben Quayle, in a primary with Dave Schweikert in Arizona, came to Congress in the midst of the news that he had a website rating the various women of Scottsdale. We should not be surprised the child of privilege still hasn’t grown up. As parents, we should be appalled that drunk, naked Congressmen are skinny dipping with the children of other Congresscritters and then hiding behind Jesus to do it.

They have embarrassed themselves, their families, their constituents, and their party. They should have the decency to resign, or at least put a paper bag over their head and go away for a very long time.

Partisans of both parties would be better off if they lost the need to instinctually defend what in non-partisan society would be indefensible.

By the way — Republican Leaders in Washington should really have their heads examined if they didn’t think this news wouldn’t leak out in August of a Presidential election year. Everything embarrassing leaks out in August of Presidential election years.