House Page Program Under Fire Again

House leaders called for an independent investigation yesterday into “allegations” related to teenage pages after two Republican resignations from the House Page Board. The Republicans faulted House Clerk Lorraine Miller, a page program administrator, for not “immediately” alerting them to misbehavior. Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite, who resigned, said four pages have been ejected this year due to shoplifting and sexual misconduct.

"In at least one vitally important incident, we were intentionally kept in the dark about dismissals for more than a week," Brown-Waite said. Last year’s Mark Foley scandal brought the program national attention; Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Minority Leader John Boehner, who initiated the investigation, added that they would establish a nonpartisan review of the page program to help chart its course. (More congressional investigations stories.)