Right-wing congressman resigns after craigslist flap

U.S. Rep. Christopher Lee, R-N.Y., has resigned after Gawker.com reported that the conservative, married congressman had been trolling craigslist picking up women.

Lee, who opposed overturning the military’s anti-gay “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy and votes anti-choice, answered a “women for men” ad last month, sending the poster a bare-chested shot of himself flexing in front of a mirror. He also sent the poster flirtatious messages.

When the poster realized who he was, she contacted the media.

In his e-mail correspondence, Lee described himself as 39, divorced, a lobbyist and a “fit, fun classy guy.” His real age is 46, and he and his wife have a young son.

A Lee spokesman initially told Gawker that Lee believed his e-mail account had been hacked around Jan. 21. But the e-mail containing the topless Blackberry portrait was dated Jan. 14.

Within hours of the story breaking under the headline “Married GOP Congressman Sent Sexy Pictures to Craigslist Babe,” Lee resigned.

“I regret the harm that my actions have caused my family, my staff and my constituents,” he said in a statement. “I deeply and sincerely apologize to them all. I have made profound mistakes and I promise to work as hard as I can to seek their forgiveness. The challenges we face in Western New York and across the country are too serious for me to allow this distraction to continue, and so I am announcing that I have resigned my seat in Congress effective immediately.”

Lee declined to discuss the incident with reporters, saying “I have to work this out with my wife.”