The first big name out of the D.C. Madam's address book is (surprise!) a Republican senator:

Sen. David Vitter, Louisiana Republican, apologized last night for "a very serious sin in my past" after his telephone number appeared among those associated with an escort service operated by Deborah Jean Palfrey, the "D.C. Madam."

Mr. Vitter's spokesman, Joel Digrado, confirmed the statement in an e-mail sent to the Associated Press.

"This was a very serious sin in my past for which I am, of course, completely responsible," Mr. Vitter said in the statement. "Several years ago, I asked for and received forgiveness from God and my wife in confession and marriage counseling." ...

He and his wife, Wendy, live in Metairie, La., with their four children.

Before we get to the blog reaction -- vivid and extensive, as might be imagined -- the big question that occurs to me is this: How can a member of Congress smart enough to graduate from Harvard University be so stupid as to do business with an escort service? Keep in mind that Vitter was first elected to Congress in a 1999 special election to replace former House Speaker Bob Livingston, who resigned after admitting on the House floor that he had committed adultery. But meanwhile, the blogs are barking ...

Jammie Wearing Fool:

If there are any Democrat names on the list, it will be curious to see if the media reports them with such unabashed glee.

Taegan Goddard digs up a 2000 quote from Mrs. Vitter:

"I'm a lot more like Lorena Bobbitt than Hillary. If he does something like that, I'm walking away with one thing, and it's not alimony, trust me."

AllahPundit notes the disturbing trend:

Meanwhile, between Duke Cunningham (again, allegedly), Foley, and now Vitter, we've got two Republicans visiting hookers and another preying on young boys in the span of 15 months. It’s starting to smell in here, boys. ... Does the party need to add sex crimes to its vetting list for candidates going forward?

Sister Toldjah has a rebuttal to the hypocrisy charge:

Contrary to the usual gum-flapping coming from the typical leftiots about how the 'right' has no room to talk about morals seeing as some of their own don't hold up to standards they say others should, here's a much needed clarification - which I'm sure will be ignored by the willfully ignorant: The right typically preaches about the goodness of leading a moral life - they don't claim to be immune to the temptations of immorality, just that your life is more fulfilling pesonally, professionally, and spiritually if you don't succumb to them.

Ed Morrisey notes a Campaign '08 angle:

The damage won't limit itself to the Senate. Vitter serves as Rudy Giuliani's campaign chair for the South. This follows on the heels of the indictment of Rudy's state chair in South Carolina, State Treasurer Thomas Ravenel, on felony drug charges. For a man many unfairly derided as overly authoritarian, his campaign has begun to look a lot more libertarian than anyone suspected.

At Outside the Beltway, James Joyner takes a libertarian stance:

We're not talking here about impoverished runaways being forced into a crude life walking the streets and selling their bodies by cruel fate. Nobody's pimp is beating them up. These are college educated women making an informed choice about how to make a living. Given the prices that have been bandied about, their clients aren't victims, either. And, considering how long the business was in operation, they apparently weren't even creating a nuisance in the neighborhood.

Surely, there are more substantial problems in the District of Columbia than well-off people deciding to exchange money for sex?

Interesting question, James, although like other crimes, illegality has not stopped prostitution from flourishing in D.C. I've seen streetwalkers on New York Avenue within 500 yards of the 5th District police precinct -- although I suppose those could be undercover cops working "sting" operations.

But James makes an interesting point about the D.C. Madam, namely that her escorts were college-educated. Liberal arts majors, probably. Wonder if they reported their careers in the alumni newsletter?

-- Robert Stacy McCain, assistant national editor, The Washington Times

UPDATE 12:05 p.m.
James Joyner responds:

While my stance on how the state should treat these matters is libertarian, my social reaction is decidedly conservative. As Chris Rock observed, if your daughter grows up to be a stripper, you've pretty much failed as a father.

-- RSM

UPDATE 2:25 p.m.
The American Specator links, as does Ace of Spades, who comments:

But seriously, what causes this? Well, first, normal human nature. Including humans' drives to act in selfish but self-destructive ways. A strong dose of arrogance (most of the people in Washington have never, ever lost a single campaign for office -- that's how they got to Washington!) verging on believing they're untouchable only compounds that. Someone who's never really had to pay for bad behavior will be inclined to commit more bad behavior.

Maybe the irony was unintentional when Ace said Mr. Vitter "never really had to pay for bad behavior." Obviously, he has been paying for it. And from Ace's comment field, "Stormy70" adds:

When they kick Kennedy out for killing a young girl, then I might care.

-- RSM

UPDATE 3:05 p.m.
Deja vu! As mentioned earlier, Mr. Vitter was elected to replace Bob Livingston, who resigned after admitting to extramarital affairs. Mr. Livingston resigned because of an investigation funded by pornographer Larry Flynt. The same investigator, Dan Moldea, may be linked to the exposure of Mr. Vitter, ABC News reports:

Last week, immediately following a judge's order, Palfrey turned over phone records for her service from 1993 to 2006 to Washington, D.C. investigative reporter and author Dan Moldea, with whom she is writing a book, Moldea told ABCNews.com.

The next day, Moldea told ABCNews.com, he discovered a phone number connected to Vitter in the records.

Moldea, who also works as an investigator for Hustler magazine publisher Larry Flynt, contacted Flynt with the information, he said. Flynt did not immediately respond to a request for comment from ABCNews.com.

Yesterday afternoon, a Hustler editor contacted Vitter's office to ask his connection to Palfrey's service.

Soon after, Vitter's office released its statement.

Wow. If true, then twice in a row, and eight years apart, Mr. Moldea's nailed a Republican from Louisiana's First District.

-- RSM