Sen. David Vitter could be re-thinking his recent crusade against ACORN, the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now. Ever since undercover videos exposed ACORN employees giving advice on fraudulently filling out loan applications to a pair of conservative activists posing as a pimp and a prostitute, the political right has had a field day condemning ACORN, which has ties to President Obama and the Democratic Party. However, for Vitter, lambasting an organization for aiding a prostitution ring (albeit a fake one), can be a tricky issue.
Vitter, who has called for an investigation into ACORN, is now getting a timely reminder of his own admitted brush with a prostitution ring. This week, the non-partisan watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, filed a complaint against Vitter with the Louisiana Bar Association for criminal conduct unbefitting a state attorney. The complaint isn't likely to go anywhere but the press release, headlined, "Vitter Seeks Investigation of ACORN for Assisting Fake Prostitution Ring, CREW Seeks Investigation of Vitter for Role in Real Prostitution Ring" has succeeded in putting Vitter's own scandal back in the news. The CREW complaint was featured in a segment on yesterday's The Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC and in a column in today's Times Picayune. The issue also appears to be the inspiration for a new Youtube video (below) from left-wing political satire specialist Andy Cobb which encourages viewers to call Vitter's office and "talk to a real prostitution authority."