[Flasch186]

As an aside:

this goofball shoud be run out of town"

Rep. Mahoney admits affairs, says he broke no laws



By BRIAN SKOLOFF, Associated Press Writer Brian Skoloff, Associated Press Writer – 1 hr 8 mins ago
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In this Oct. 26, 2006 file photo, Democrat Tim Mahoney waits for the start of AP – In this Oct. 26, 2006 file photo, Democrat Tim Mahoney waits for the start of a debate, at a West Palm …

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. – U.S. Rep. Tim Mahoney, embroiled in an adultery scandal and a tight race for re-election, admitted Friday to having at least two affairs but insisted he broke no laws and will not resign. The first-term Democrat conceded that one of the affairs began as he was running on a family values platform to replace Mark Foley, a Republican who resigned amid revelations that he sent lurid Internet messages to male pages who had worked on Capitol Hill as teenagers.

Mahoney, 52, apologized to his wife, his daughter and his constituents, even as he maintained he hadn't been hypocritical.

"I can understand why people would feel that way and for those people, all I can say is, 'I'm sorry I let you down,'" Mahoney said in his first set of interviews since news broke this week that he had a sexual relationship with Patricia Allen, 50, whom he met while campaigning in 2006.

Allen went to work for Mahoney's congressional office, then his campaign. Mahoney said she was fired for performance issues, not because of the affair.

Allen threatened to sue Mahoney for sexual harassment, and they reached a settlement to avoid a public airing. Her payout came from Mahoney's personal accounts, not from campaign funds or federal dollars, he said.

Allen has not returned repeated telephone calls.