Former House Speaker Tom Foley dies

Former Speaker of the House Tom Foley died today at the age of 84.

The popular Foley was a Democrat from the state of Washington who served as Speaker for 5 years before being defeated for another House term in the media-tinged 1994 "election." Foley was widely considered a champion of civil liberties and other causes benefiting working-class constituents - unlike the DLC, the Republican wing of the Democratic Party that started calling the shots in the '90s.

It's hard to believe residents of Foley's district allowed him to be replaced in his House seat by a bungling clown who attacked him for actually serving the public. It's also hard to believe the American public allowed him to be replaced as Speaker by a man who seems almost synonymous with modern congressional incompetence: Newt Gingrich.