The Mouse Takes the Cheese. The Cheese hires a lawyer.

Why does a victim need a lawyer? Well, as Drudge is reporting, the former page who traded IMs with Foley was baiting Foley, "punking" him in currentspeak. How did they end up in the hands of Democrats and ABC news. That needs to be explained. The kid has hired an attorney, possibly, I suppose, in case he gets accused of libel, slander or violating Foley's privacy, or to sue Foley. Or maybe to negotiate a book deal. Whatever.

The Oklahoman is reporting:

A former U.S. House page working on the gubernatorial campaign of Republican Rep. Ernest Istook may be a part of the scandal involving former U.S. Rep. Mark Foley, The Oklahoman has learned.

It confirms much of what Drudge said, but doesn't say how the IMs got into the hands of bloggers and Democrats. However, there's a sidebar about William Kerr whose blog is the first to name Edmund. I think the kid did a public service, but he should have met with the Speaker ASAP when the scandal broke. How did he record these IMs? How did they get into the hands of the Democrats and ABC. More to come, I'm sure, but if I were Brian Ross and had been used in a political stunt, I'd tell everybody who my source is, but Ross probably won't.

Also, someone has been misleading the press with reports that the Republicans have seen internal polls predicting 50 losses in the House. That is being flatly denied by Ken Mehlman, who should know. Fox News reported the fake story, which is at the top of Memeorandum.com