Chris Lee shirtless photo leads N.Y. Congressman to resign, but with raised suspicions

BY PAM LOBLEY

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

NOW THAT'S FUNNY

There may be a writer out there who can resist a story about a married Congressman who texts a shirtless, flexing photo of himself to a woman he met through Craisglist, but it isn't me.

Chris Lee (R-NY) hastily resigned from office after getting caught sending the photo. He is married and has a young son.

In the photo he is nude on top, but wearing dress pants and a leather belt. It looks like he just ducked out of work for a sec, peeled off his shirt, snapped, texted, and then went back to House floor to vote on some legislation. You know those Republicans are really trying to strip down spending.

His body is very fine. Too bad we can't say the same for his judgment.

Mr. Lee went looking for an affair on Craigslist, checked out the "women seeking men" section, and replied to a woman telling her that he was a "very fit fun classy guy". He also shaved several years off of his age, saying that he was 39. He is 46.

Classy, indeed.

It's not shocking that a Congressman is cheating on his wife, it's not shocking that a Congressman is so vain that he would lie about his age and flex his pecs, it's not shocking that Craigslist is a magnet for losers. What IS shocking is that there is still someone out there who thinks it's safe and private to text revealing photos of themselves. This scandal would not be nearly as embarrassing as it is without the absurd, flexing photo. How could a member of Congress be so stupid?

Wait. Did I seriously just ask that question?

I guess the best thing you can say about this situation is that Mr. Lee resigned with all possible speed, and did not subject us to one of those queasy, apologetic speeches with his stunned wife standing by his side. Rather than getting credit for this move, though, Mr. Lee's haste has only raised the suspicion level. Usually politicians caught in the act of something bad just smile and deny and wait for the problem to go away, which it frequently, and disconcertingly, does. His eagerness to step down only begs the question: of what else might he be guilty?

Well, whatever he's hiding, he probably took a picture of it, so it won't be hidden for long.

Fellas, Valentine's Day is coming up. We love your beefcake, but don't send it over the bandwidth.

Pam Lobley writes the "Now That's Funny" column. Sign up for her mailing list at pamlobley.com.