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Jed Lewison of Daily Kos nicely summarizes the recently announced resignation of extremist “family values” Congressman Mark Souder. One key point? Turns out the “interviewer” in a campaign-related video on the importance of promoting abstinence and chastity was Souder’s non-marital parter.

As you know, I’m usually very harsh about the twits-vs-substance nature of these scandals, where in people enjoy the schadenfreude of a public scold’s downfall for canoodling while missing the larger point. And I’m feeling pretty harsh about this time too because the substantive problem is that Rep. Souder is, or at least was, a major leader and shaper of legislation aimed at preventing precisely the behavior he engaged in. And the nature of his role pretty much implies that he knew, understood, had access to, and a professional as well as personal interest in applying the most current and most effective abstinence-promoting, chastity-keeping, and fidelity-maintaining methods known. And yet knowing what he knew, and having access to what he had, it still didn’t work for him! And so presumably whatever it was he was promoting, and legislating, would almost certainly be even less likely to work for people with less knowledge and less support. You want a scandal? Well that’s the scandal!

One other thing, by the way. One that really does deserve singling out Souder for hypocrisy. Lewison says (emphasis mine)

GOP Rep. Mark Souder of Indiana — the leading advocate for abstinence education in Congress —  will resign after an affair with one of his female staffers became public.

He said it here.

If Souder had had even an ounce of the integrity he doesn’t just demand but also legislates for, he’d have resigned before his affair became public.

See also: Acronym Replacement: It’s Not IOKIYAR, It’s IJNNWACDI (It’s Just Not News When A Conservative Does It)