Latest C Street Sleaze Has A Strong Southern Accent

A new unsavory chapter in the conservative sexcapades at C Street House is based in Mississippi. But explosive evidence in the case of former U.S. Rep. Charles W. "Chip" Pickering (R-MS) could cause repercussions well beyond the Magnolia State.

Pickering, like Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) and Gov. Mark Sanford (R-SC), lived at a "Christian fellowship home" on C Street in Washington, D.C. Ensign and Sanford have been the subjects of adultery scandals in recent weeks, and now we learn that Pickering's estranged wife is suing the former Congressman's alleged mistress for alienation of affection.

Max Blumenthal, of The Daily Beast, reports that Chip Pickering kept a diary about his extramarital activities and identifies other C Streeters who became his enablers in adultery.

The Pickering diary could become key evidence in his estranged wife's lawsuit. But Mississippi Republicans are applying a full-court press on the state's courts to keep the diary's contents from public view. Reports Blumenthal:

The release of Pickering’s diary would likely have an electrifying effect, reigniting media interest in his dalliance and drawing renewed attention to the C Street evangelical men’s group to which he and other Republican lawmakers have belonged.

What might Pickering's diary reveal? Blumenthal clues us in:

And according to a divorce filing by Pickering’s estranged wife, Leisha, the former congressman’s diary reveals the identities of several men who enabled his adulterous trysts and helped him cover his tracks.

So who were Pickering’s enablers? Are they or were they ever C Street House residents? And what role did they play, if any, in helping Pickering transform a house that hosted a “Christian men’s accountability group” into his love nest?

Pickering was elected to Congress in 1996 and retired in January 2009. Interestingly, the first six years of Pickering's tenure in Washington dovetails with that of former Congressman Bob Riley, who now is governor of Alabama.

Bob Lowry, of The Huntsville Times, recently reported that Riley had been a C Streeter. The story, titled "Riley Recalls Bible Study at C Street House," quotes Riley as saying he was a regular at weekly Bible studies but doesn't remember other activities at C Street.

If Pickering's diaries come to light, perhaps they will help jog his memory.