Internet helped fuel Rep. Lee's fall

WASHINGTON - He was a rising star in Congress at lunchtime, and out of office by dinner.

Rep. Chris Lee fell from power this week with a velocity seldom seen in the annals of Washington sex scandals, a blinking red caution sign that the speed and reach of the Internet can crash a career in the time it takes to push a button.

The now-famous photo of a shirtless Lee, a Republican congressman from Western New York, moved across cyberspace at 2:33 p.m. Wednesday, for just about anyone who wanted to see it. Three hours later, Lee resigned.

Republicans, still scrambling for their footing less than two months after assuming control of the House, insisted that Lee, who is married and has a young son, didn't need to be pushed.

"Congressman Lee made his own decision that he thought was in his own best interest and the interest of his family," said House Speaker John Boehner.

Roll Call, a Capitol Hill newspaper, reported last summer that Boehner had warned Lee and other newer members of Congress to knock off unseemly partying with female lobbyists.

Lee, 46, was moving quickly up the House Republican ranks after winning the seat in 2008 despite a Democratic wave nationwide. A successful businessman, he won a coveted seat just last month on the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee after only one term in office.

His immolation began last week, according to Remy Stern, editor-in-chief of the website Gawker.com. Stern said Gawker first became aware of the story late last week when the woman who had the exchange with Lee sent the website an e-mail tip about the encounter - including an attachment photo of a bare-chested Lee flexing an arm muscle. Through data embedded in the photo file, Gawker determined the photo was taken in Washington. - AP